Monday, April 10, 2006

News Highlight: German Green Power Summit

News Highlight

Environment DAILY, 4 April 2006 - Germany's energy industry has pledged to invest €70bn in new infrastructure by 2012, of which €33-40bn, or a maximum of nearly 60% of it, in renewables. The commitment came at a national energy policy "summit" in Berlin on Monday.

The meeting of political and business leaders was called by chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss long-term energy strategy in the light of new security of supply fears and the challenge of climate change.

Three working groups are being set up to report back in time for a second summit meeting in September. The government is expected to unveil a new energy policy in mid-2007.

Conservative politicians used the meeting to reiterate demands for Germany to reconsider its policy of phasing out all nuclear power stations. The summit made no decisions, but Ms Merkel herself acknowledged that debate on nuclear power would continue ahead of the September meeting.

Environmentalist reaction to the summit was largely negative, despite the renewables investment pledge. The opposition Green party expressed fears that the nuclear phase-out was no longer certain. NGO Bund accused the government of allowing itself to be bewitched by industry promises to build CO2-free coal-fired power stations

Climate Change Action

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