#Germany - “Energiewende”: Feet of clay

For several years already, the German government has been implementing its energy transition (ultimately to renewable energy sources), which entered its intensified phase after the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011. Unlike many countries where this accident served as an additional impetus to the development of innovative technologies and the introduction of new reliable safety systems, Germany chose to promptly phase out nuclear power.

In May 2017, the German Federal Audit Office published a report addressed to the Federal Government’s Budget Committee on the measures taken to realize the “Energiewende” (the German for “energy transition”). The document provides assessment of the activities of the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy aimed at implementation of the concept (it is available in the German language at: https://www.bundesrechnungshof.de/de/veroeffentlichungen/beratungsberichte/2016-bericht-massnahmen-zur-umsetzung-der-energiewende-durch-das-bundesministerium-fuer-wirtschaft-und-energie-schwerpunkt-kapitel-0903-energie-und-klimafonds).

Among the conclusions outlined in the report, the Audit Office found that by now the Ministry has not been able to ensure efficient control over the energy transition being implemented. The very concept of energy transition, according to the document, is not without flaws and raises quite a number of questions from the ecological and economic points of view. Also the report notes that the implementation of the energy transition is becoming increasingly expensive.

Professor Hans-Josef Allelein, who is responsible for Reactor Safety and Reactor Technology at RWTH Aachen University, laid out his own view of the current implementation of the “Energiewende” in Germany.

"I believe that the "strategy" that puts an emphasis on renewable sources as a way to ensure sufficient and effective power supply cannot be characterized as well thought-out as it ignores several important factors. For instance, for technical reasons relating to power grid stability, it is inconsiderate to rely solely on renewable sources – after all, this is not the most profitable option in terms of costs. It goes without saying that the situation varies from region to region depending on the availability of corresponding resources – and the so-called "energy mix" – but I consider it generally unreasonable to rely on one kind of energy alone.

It is fair to say that the implementation of the energy transition in Germany puts a strain not only on the state, which is heavily subsidizing the development of wind power and photovoltaics, but also on the population that faces a notable rise in energy prices triggered in the first place by the Renewable Energy Sources Act. In the end, it is impossible to consider the state and the population separately from each other, since the funds allocated by the state come from taxpayers. This means that the population is thereby living under a burden, and the burden is considerable.

It is also important whether it is possible to achieve the high climate change goals (first of all, this applies to the ambitious reduction of carbon dioxide emissions) with a particular energy mix. It seems to me that Germany has chosen a non-optimal path for these purposes. I would like to recall that in Germany, before the accident at Fukushima NPP, an agreement was reached at the political level to extend the operation of German nuclear power plants for a period of 8 to 14 years. The decision that was taken after Fukushima clearly comes into conflict with this agreement. It should be acknowledged that in 2011, Chancellor Angela Merkel skillfully played on the moods of the German population and the German media, taking advantage of this to forge a coalition with the Social Democrats. From my point of view, the decision was practically unsupported by any facts – that was simply power politics on Merkel’s part. The national economy and the population would have it easier now if nuclear energy were used further as planned and the revenues in this case could be used to address the implementation the “Energiewende".

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