Government has given up on coal exit task force timetable – report

Even before the highly anticipated official launch of Germany’s coal exit task force, the government has given up on the commission’s timetable, Silke Kersting and Klaus Stratmann report for business daily Handelsblatt. During ongoing meetings on the commission’s composition, Economics and Energy Minister Peter Altmaier said it would conclude negotiations in spring 2019, contrary to the coalition treaty’s aim of presenting its results this year, unnamed participants in the meeting told Handelsblatt. “This increases the risk that the Climate Protection Act cannot be passed next year, because it is meant to be based on the commission’s findings,” the article says.
Green Party head Annalena Baerbock said the delay was an admission of failure by the government, adding that it revealed stark divisions over the coal exit within the coalition of Social Democrats (SPD) and Angela Merkel’s conservatives (CDU&CSU).

For more details, read the freshly updated article Germany gears up for official talks on coal phase-out.