Electrification key for resilient future, German env min tells climate conference
Clean Energy Wire / Handelsblatt
Replacing the combustion of fossil fuels with electrification in sectors like industry, transport and buildings will make economies more resilient and efficient, German environment minister Carsten Schneider said at a climate conference in Berlin organised by the government.
At the annual Petersberg Climate Dialogue, which Germany has hosted since 2010 and this year brought together representatives from 40 countries, Schneider called the current energy crisis triggered by the Iran war a “fossil fuel crisis,” which underlined the need for a more rapid renewables expansion “for security and the climate.”
In an attempt to cushion the fallout from the war, the European Commission set out plans to cut electricity taxes and coordinate the summer refill of countries' gas storage.
“Fossil fuels do not offer the security of supply that is so urgently needed by people, businesses, economies and global supply chains,” the minister said. “Those who rely on importing oil and gas today are exposing themselves to incalculable risks.”
His words were echoed by United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell, who said the surging oil and gas prices caused by the US-Israeli attack on Iran were “delivering a gut-punch to every nation and billions of households” likely to last for months, reported business daily Handelsblatt.
In Germany, a majority of respondents in a representative survey said they were concerned about price rises caused by the war, with those on the lowest incomes expressing the most concern.
Environment ministers from Turkey and Australia, the countries co-hosting this year’s COP31 UN climate summit in Antalya, Turkey, also spoke at the event. Turkish minister Murat Kurum said “multilateralism isn’t doing particularly well at the moment, but it isn’t dead yet.”
Ahead of the conference, Gerhard Schlaudraff, climate and energy policy representative at the German Foreign Office, said greater international cooperation was needed to end the war, echoing Schneider’s call to expand the rollout of renewables.