The Renewable Energies Policy of the new German Government

Ladies and Gentlemen,

first of all let me congratulate IOVE and Prof. Palaskas on organizing this event. It is a very timely one. You are raising an issue of great importance not only for , but for the entire world. Therefore it is a pleasure for me to speak on this topic to such a distinguished audience this morning.

In the past you may have heard a lot about Germany´s leading role in the development and export of renewable energies. For many years has been a frontrunner in this area of technology:

• It has the largest wind power market in the world;
• It has the second largest market for photo voltaic, only surpassed by ; and
• has the largest solar thermal market in .

But today I do not intend to speak about past achievements. I rather assume this would be a good opportunity to explain the policies on renewable energies of the new German government. As you probably know, the new cabinet took its oath just a few days ago, on November 22. It is a so-called “Grand Coalition”, meaning an alliance of the two major parties, the Christian Democratic Union – CDU - and the Social Democratic Party – SPD. They have signed a coalition agreement which includes, among others, an ambitious outline of their intended policies on renewable energies.

Anrede,

The most important message up front is that the new government will continue to be a strong supporter of renewable energies. At the same time it wants to increase energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy sources such as bio-fuel.

The aim is two-fold: First of all to protect our climate and our environment, and secondly, especially in times of high oil prices, to make our economy more competitive and innovative, thereby creating additional employment. These aims will be formulated into a new coherent energy strategy that will guarantee a balanced energy mix, leading to an assured energy supply at affordable rates.

The new German Chancellor, Mrs. Angela Merkel, announced this Wednesday that she will call for a national energy summit at the beginning of next year.

What are our specific targets, as spelled out in the Coalition agreement?

1.    By 2010, renewable energies shall contribute 12,5% to the overall electricity production, and by 2020 at least 20%. The current rate is 10%.

2.    The share of renewable energies of the total energy consumption shall reach 4,2% by the year 2010, and 10% by 2020; today it contributes 3,6%.

3.    We aim – in the intermediate future – to increase markedly the share of bio-fuels with respect to the total primary energy consumption. By 2010, this share should reach 5,75%. Today, it is 1,6%.

To achieve these targets, the following 9 measures will be taken:

1.    The German government will continue to apply the Renewable Energy Law which regulates the feed-in rates, and may revise it to take better into account the developments in each source. Rates will be made more transparent for end-users and the burden for energy-intensive industries will limited.

2.    The Government will concentrate its efforts on the re-powering of existing wind energy and on off-shore installations, and for this purpose will also expand the power grid accordingly.

3.    The government will continue the Market Incentive Program to fully use the market potential for renewable energies in the area of heating, worth some 200 million Euros per year.

4.    On the international level, the German government will initiate the founding of an International Renewable Energy Agency, called IRENA.

5.    The existing Export Initiative for renewable energies will be further intensified.

6.    Regarding bio-fuels, the existing tax-exemption will be replaced by a blending-obligation with regular fuels. Together with the industry, the government will attempt the market introduction of so-called synthetic bio-fuels, through the construction and operation of industrial-size installations.

7.    There is a huge potential for energy saving in buildings, machinery, vehicles, power plants and industries. To tap into this potential, the coalition has decided on the following measures: The current building renovation program will be augmented to reach 1,5 billion Euros per year; the target is to re-fit annually 5% of all buildings constructed before 1978 to make them more energy-efficient. Furthermore the government will push for the upgrading of existing power plants and for the extension of decentralized and highly efficient small-sized power generation.

In this context, the German government strongly supports the European initiatives to increase energy efficiency and calls for the establishment of a so-called Top-Runner-Program. Furthermore, it will also push for the formulation of a European strategy for a sustainable and cost-efficient energy and raw material supply.

8.    The government will gradually increase the amount of money provided for energy research and development of innovative technologies. There will be an national Innovation Program for hydrogen-based technologies, including fuel-cells. The government will call on the business community and industries to support these efforts by burden-sharing.

9.    Finally, another aim is to increase competition in the existing electricity and gas market in order to provide better prices for the consumers. To this end, the government will try to strengthen cross-border competition.

Anrede,

As you can see from this list, the new German government is very determined to continue a policy focussed on renewable energies. But moreover, it will also continue to be a major force in increasing the use of renewable energies not only in , but also worldwide. The process that was started in 2004 at the international conference on renewable energy in has been followed up by an action plan and a recent conference in . Renewable energies will also play a prominent role in the work of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development.

has a great potential to become also a fore-runner in the use of renewable energies. Not only are the climatic conditions perfect. But also the recent initiatives by the Greek government and especially by Minister Sioufas to liberalize the energy market and to provide better conditions for investors in the field of renewable energies are promising signs. We hope that the law on feed-in-tariffs will soon be passed by parliament. German firms need a reliable basis in order to make calculable and thus possible investments in the field of wind and solar energy, in which they are very much interested.

has already now a longstanding history of investments in renewable energies in . The first projects in wind and solar energy on the go back some 20 years. Currently there are more than half a dozen investment projects either under way or already realized in windparks on Crete, on Evia, and on the Peloponnésos, together worth about 60 million Euros.

Visible projects can help to bring renewable energies into public attention. One such project is the solar panel roof on-top of the in in Maroussi, very near to the Olympic Stadium. It was inaugurated just before the Olympic Games and now provides part of the energy needs of the school. Similar projects have been installed in El Salvador, Portugal and Namibia. They give proof of the tremendous technological potential for these energy sources. It is the best way to assure a sustainable future for the coming generations. Therefore, it is our obligation to waste no time and to pave the way for these technologies to succeed.

Thank you very much for your attention.