Coal exit debate must take costs into account – opinion

Representatives of consumer protection and energy-intensive industry should be part of the upcoming so-called ‘coal exit commission’ to ensure that cost arguments are taken into account, writes German Chemicals Industry Association (VCI) director-general Utz Tillmann in a guest commentary in Handelsblatt. “The costs of the energy transition need to be considered more than they have until now,” writes Tillmann. Raised renewables share ambitions in the country’s power mix by 2030 meant higher costs over the coming years. Should the coal exit happen too fast, power prices will rise and supply security could be endangered, writes Tillmann.

Read the guest commentary (behind paywall) in German here.

For background, read the article Germany gears up for official talks on coal phase-out and the dossier Energiewende effects on power prices, costs and industry.