Can Germany manage without natural gas? [Gas in Transition]

Summary

Can a large industrialised society like Germany run securely and smoothly on a power system largely fed by intermittent renewable energy sources? It is a question that not only concerns Germany, but the rest of the world as well. If they can do it, anyone can. [Gas in Transition, Volume 1, Issue 4]

by: Karel Beckman

In Germany there sometimes is a lot of optimism about the potential of renewable energy and scepticism about natural gas and oil. As a telling example, recently a group of politicians from Angela Merkel’s conservative CDU party published a position paper – more properly called a manifesto – proclaiming that Germany can become “the world’s first industrialised country running on 100% renewable energy.” They envisage reaching this goal as early as 2030. What is more, according to the group, which calls itself KlimaUnion, ending the use of natural gas and oil completely by 2030 will make transport, heating and power consumptioncheaper than it is now, in part because it will save Germany €63bn ($74bn)/year that it now spends on the import of fossil fuels. “Better to spend 63 billion on the sun and on dikes than on Putin or sheikhs,” they write, describing the change to 100% clean energy as a “money savings festival.” The KlimaUnion’s manifesto, which may be seen as an effort by CDU party members to make the party more attractive to climate-conscious voters in the upcoming federal elections in September, argues that all the requ...

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