Germany’s declining economy is helping the country reach its goal of reducing emissions, a think tank report has found.
An analysis published by Agora Energiewende on January 7 found that while most of the country’s CO2 reductions last year came about due to the shutdown of coal power plants and shift to renewable and non-German energy sources, the overall weakness of the country’s economy also reduced emissions.
The reduction could be seen mainly in the German transport sector. According to the body, there was a slight increase in overall passenger vehicle traffic in 2024.
That was offset by a reduction in heavy vehicle traffic, which reportedly fell due to the country’s overall production decline.
“Only a small reduction of two million tonnes of CO2 was achieved compared with the previous year – mainly due to lower heavy goods traffic as a result of the weak economy,” the think-tank said.
The report’s authors also focused on perceived successes in the country’s shift to renewables, arguing that the move away from coal had seen energy costs fall rather than rise.
“In 2024, coal-fired power plants with a total capacity of 6.1 gigawatts were shut down, which corresponded to 16 per cent of Germany’s installed coal capacity,” the organisation said.
“The loss in capacity was offset by record renewable energy generation amounting to 55 per cent of gross electricity consumption and increased imports, 49 per cent of which came from renewables.”
“Despite stable electricity demand, the exchange price for electricity fell by an average of 18 per cent or €17/MWh (megawatt hour) to €78/MWh compared with 2023,” Agora Energiewende reported.
This value was far higher than less green-dependent economies. According to data from the US Energy Information Administration, wholesale electricity prices in America mostly stuck around the $60/MWh (€58/MWh) range last year, with only the country’s northwest seeing prices higher than Germany.
This was offset by the price of natural gas, which was highest in Northern California at $4.67/MMBtu (€4.49/MMBtu, one million British thermal units), compared to almost $14/MMBtu (€13/MMBtu) in Germany in November last year.
Around 100 people are applying to change their legal gender each day in Germany under federal-level legislation passed late last year. https://t.co/Ou4atGJBX2
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