German coal industry underpins renewable push 'No appetite'

'No appetite' But despite government inaction, there are some reasons to believe the growing use of lignite may not last. All the new coal plants built in recent years, together with those that are due to open this year and next, were given the go-ahead about 10 years ago, when energy prices were much higher than now. Some argue that such massive investments are simply not viable in today's economic climate. Campaigners want to stop new coal mines and the expansion of older mines As Mariana Heinrich at Poyry Managing Consulting says, these plants "represent the end of a business cycle and not a longer term trend". More importantly perhaps, "there is no public or political appetite for building [new coal plants] for the next 30-40 years," argues Lars Waldman, senior associate at the Agora Energiewende think tank. And he says that lignite is not needed to fill the gap that will be left by phasing out nuclear power, a decision taken as far back as 2000. "We hope and think that gas will fill the gap, as there is enough installed capacity," says Mr Waldman. This capacity is largely dormant right now due to the cheap price of coal, and the rising price of gas. Mrs Schulz-Hopfner wants to see more renewables, not lignite "From the economic side, renewables and gas can be the cheapest way to cover all demand." Mrs Schulz-Hopfner will take little comfort in that. "It is idiotic. We don't need more and more lignite because we are using more renewable energy," she says. "If we Germans truly want the Energiewende (energy transition), then no more villages should be demolished." But the new generation of coal plants means the fossil fuel will remain a key component of Germany's energy mix. The fact that lignite will always be cheap to produce, allied with a powerful pro-coal lobby in German politics, means the temptation to rely on this dirty fuel will remain strong as long as the carbon price remains low. For a country that, in so many respects, is a leader in clean energy, not to mention committed to stringent carbon dioxide emissions reductions, this contradiction seems odd to say the least. This article is part of a series of features on the future of energy. The next, published on Monday 14 April, will look at attempts to mine coal more cleanly.