German climate minister picks economist as successor for ousted energy state secretary

An economist and regional state secretary will become Germany’s new energy state secretary following the departure of Patrick Graichen due to violations of the ministry's compliance rules. “With Philipp Nimmermann, an experienced state secretary with economic expertise, a great deal of administrative experience, and a connoisseur of political processes will join the economy and climate ministry,” Green minister Robert Habeck said. “He will rethink processes with a fresh eye, integrate the different perspectives with his experience, and advance the energy transition, the heating transition, and the transformation with stringency,” he added. Before becoming state secretary in the Green Party-led economy ministry in the state of Hessen in 2019, Nimmermann was finance state secretary in Schleswig-Holstein, and chief economist at BHF-Bank.

Graichen’s departure came at a crucial time for the government’s energy transition plans, as law reforms such as the de-facto ban of new oil and gas heaters, are debated within the ruling coalition, by the media, and among the population. Aside from heating rules, many other key projects initiated under the former state secretary have yet to be implemented. These include a legislative package to speed up solar expansion, electricity subsidies for certain industries, tenders to support the building of new gas-fired power plants, or the construction of further LNG import infrastructure.