Day: February 6, 2024

Olaf Scholz’s energy policies branded ‘toxic’ by German business chief

The leader of Germany’s main industry association has slammed the German government’s energy policies as “absolutely toxic”, in a sign of declining business confidence in chancellor Olaf Scholz’s stewardship of the economy.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz

Siegfried Russwurm says government’s climate agenda is ‘more dogmatic than any other country I know’.

The leader of Germany’s main industry association has slammed the German government’s energy policies as “absolutely toxic”, in a sign of declining business confidence in chancellor Olaf Scholz’s stewardship of the economy.

Siegfried Russwurm, head of the BDI, told the Financial Times that Germany’s climate agenda was “more dogmatic than any other country I know”. The  Financial Times has the story.

The country’s decision to phase out nuclear energy and coal and switch to renewables was placing businesses in Europe’s largest economy at a disadvantage to those in other industrialised nations, he said.

“Nobody can say with any certainty today what our energy supply will look like in seven years’ time, and that’s why no one can say how high energy prices will be in Germany then,” he said. “For companies that have to make investment decisions, that is absolutely toxic.”

His comments come at a time of growing concern about the outlook for Germany, which was the world’s worst-performing major economy last year, according to the IMF. The country has been plagued by high interest rates, low export demand and high energy prices triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Germany’s gross domestic product shrank 0.3 per cent last year and exports fell 4.6 per cent in December, a sharper decline than economists had expected. The OECD said on Monday that Germany’s economy would expand by just 1.1 per cent in 2024, a much lower rate than the OECD average of 3 per cent.

Germany has also seen nationwide rail strikes and widespread protests by farmers angry at cuts to agricultural subsidies, while industrial action by Lufthansa ground crews on Wednesday was set to cause severe disruption to air travel. 

Meanwhile, the three parties in Scholz’s fractious coalition — Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats — argue openly over how to kick-start economic growth.

“Indicators of political uncertainty in Germany show that it is as high now as it was in the UK during Brexit,” said Clemens Fuest, head of the Ifo Institute, a leading think-tank. 

One reason, he said, was the bombshell ruling by Germany’s constitutional court in November that upset the government’s spending plans by striking down its use of off-budget funds. The judgment forced Scholz and his ministers to make huge savings in their 2024 budget, a revised version of which only passed on Friday last week. One of the measures is a sharp increase in transmission grid fees which it is feared will drive up businesses’ energy bills.

But there were other reasons for the febrile mood that were more deep-seated, Fuest added. “It has to do with the fact we have a government with no real economic strategy,” he said. “There is complete disagreement between the economy and finance ministries and that . . . presents risks to the economy, both in the short and long-term.”   

Read the full story  here.

“CO2 Traps Heat” is 1984ish DoubleSpeak

Oxygen, Nitrogen and CO2 atmospheric molecules experience billions of collisions every second so that energy is transferred between them. CO2 can shed its absorbed energy via a collision in about 20 microseconds.

By Jim Steele

99% of climate scientists know:

· Heat is trapped on earth when some of the incoming solar energy can’t radiate back to space.

· In just one second, a relaxed CO2 molecule can absorb infra-red, get excited causing CO2 to release that energy and return to the relaxed stage.

· Oxygen, Nitrogen and CO2 atmospheric molecules experience billions of collisions every second so that energy is transferred between them. CO2 can shed its absorbed energy via a collision in about 20 microseconds.

· Oxygen and nitrogen make up 99% of the earth’s atmosphere. Those molecules warm by collisions with greenhouse gases and earth’s solar heated surface.

· It’s oxygen, nitrogen and the ocean that traps heat. Oxygen and nitrogen can’t radiate heat back to space. Subsurface solar-heated ocean water can’t radiate heat back to space.

· The truth is without heat transfer to greenhouse gases, oxygen and nitrogen would experience runaway warming.

· Heat absorbed by oxygen and nitrogen can only radiate back to space by colliding with a greenhouse gas, transferring its energy so that the greenhouse gases can radiate that energy back to space! Above the altitude where water vapor precipitates out, collisions with CO2 are virtually the only pathway for oxygen and nitrogen’s acquired heat to radiate back to space!

· Wouldn’t it be more honest to say CO2 is vital for cooling the planet?

EU drops net zero demands after farmers’ protests

The European Union has caved in to angry protests from farmers and cut a target to slash agricultural emissions as part of the bloc’s net zero drive.

Brussels removes order to reduce emissions linked to agriculture after mounting anger across Europe.

The European Union has caved in to angry protests from farmers and cut a target to slash agricultural emissions as part of the bloc’s net zero drive.

A demand to reduce nitrogen, methane and other emissions linked to farming by almost a third has been removed from a wider Brussels plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 90 per cent by 2040.

The Telegraph has the story.

On Tuesday, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, also proposed withdrawing the EU’s plan to halve the use of pesticides, calling it a “symbol of polarisation”.

“Our farmers deserve to be listened to,” she told the European Parliament.

“I know that they are worried about the future of agriculture and their future as farmers. But they also know that agriculture needs to move to a more sustainable model of production so that their farms remain profitable in the years to come.”

A recommendation urging EU citizens to eat less meat was also removed from the plan.

The concessions came amid mounting demonstrations by farmers in Belgium, France, Germany and Italy ahead of this year’s EU elections.

Blockades on supermarket distribution centres have left shelves empty in Brussels, while several people have been injured in traffic accidents caused by farmers’ protests in the Netherlands, as they dumped rubbish and set fires on highways.

Organisers have threatened to continue disruption in the lead-up to the elections for the European Parliament in June.

The ballot is seen as increasingly problematic for Mrs von der Leyen, and other mainstream politicians seeking re-election on a green agenda.

Resistance to the environmental overhaul has been steadily growing, including from the European People’s Party, the centre-Right political group to which commission president belongs.

The move to offer concessions to the farmers would be seen as a major step away from the bloc’s original green plans.

Agriculture was seen as “one of the core areas to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2040”, according to a draft European Commission plan, reported by the Financial Times.

The draft states that policies should now address the entire food sector rather than farming, which accounts for about 10 per cent of the EU’s emissions, “in isolation”.

The EU has pledged to be carbon neutral by 2050, with a first step of cutting emissions by 55 per cent compared with 1990 levels within six years.

Read the full here.

Claim: University Researchers Feel Powerless to Take Personal Climate Action

Why are academics yielding to pressure to travel frequently, if every flight brings us closer to a lethal climate tipping point? Why is keeping their job so important, if the world is on the brink of climate catastrophe?

From Watts Up With That

Essay by Eric Worrall

“Barriers” to climate action include pressure to travel, and a lack of financial incentives to embrace low carbon approaches to research.

Climate change: university researchers feel powerless to take action – survey

Published: January 31, 2024 2.38am AEDT
Briony Latter
Researcher in Climate Change Engagement, Cardiff University

University researchers in the UK, across all disciplines and at all career stages, are struggling to take action against climate change despite wanting to do so. 

Many academics worry about climate change but face several barriers to changing their habits, including the pressure to travel. In one case, a climate researcher conducting field work abroad wanted to use slower and more sustainable forms of transport rather than fly back to work at a research institute in Germany. He was fired.

Gianluca Grimalda

…

The majority think their university does not give them enough information about how to conduct research in a sustainable way. Funding processes, such as applications for grants to carry out research, do not incentivise low-carbon approaches either, they say. 

…

Different barriers to climate action appear at different career stages. Early career researchers in particular lack institutional support (such as job security or the encouragement to act), are involved in few projects about climate change (whether as part of research or outside of their roles) and feel uncertain about what they can do. 

Mid-career researchers were more likely to complain of a high workload thwarting their ambitions. When asked if senior researchers should have a high responsibility for addressing climate change in universities, senior researchers themselves were more likely to think so than early and mid-career researchers, suggesting that they recognise their own potential role.

…Read more: https://theconversation.com/climate-change-university-researchers-feel-powerless-to-take-action-survey-221830

Why are academics yielding to pressure to travel frequently, if every flight brings us closer to a lethal climate tipping point? Why is keeping their job so important, if the world is on the brink of climate catastrophe?

Why do university academics want OTHERS to spoon-feed them information on how they can be more carbon neutral? Why can’t they take 5 minutes to look up low carbon lifestyle and professional alternatives for themselves?

If this pathetic effort is all the energy and concern university academics can muster to address the alleged climate crisis, there is no reason for the rest of us care.

EU mulls emergency aid for collapsing solar producers

The European Commission is in early-stage talks on emergency measures to buoy drowning EU solar manufacturers who say Chinese subsidies are suffocating the industry, according to two people familiar with the matter.

The European Commission will make a statement Monday as state-backed Chinese competition fuels a wave of bankruptcies in Europe.

BRUSSELS — The European Commission is in early-stage talks on emergency measures to buoy drowning EU solar manufacturers who say Chinese subsidies are suffocating the industry, according to two people familiar with the matter.

On Monday, the Commission will make a statement on the teetering sector at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, while MEPs are also expected to debate ideas to prop up the industry. Politico has the story.

Possible options could include direct support or trade defense measures, according to the people, who were granted anonymity to speak candidly. The Commission, the EU’s executive, did not confirm whether it was considering a bailout or trade defense measures.

The talks come as the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC), the body representing photovoltaic producers, this week sent a letter to Brussels appealing for “urgent” measures including a swift, EU-led buyout of their inventories.

The group argues that subsidized Chinese mass production of solar modules — which currently sell for half the price of their EU equivalents — paired with an oversupply of panels in the bloc makes it impossible for the bloc’s manufacturers to shift their stocks.

“We’re really seeing a wave of bankruptcies” in Europe, said ESMC Secretary General Johan Lindahl, citing recent insolvencies including Dutch panel producer Exasun and Austrian module manufacturer Energetic. Germany is also currently in 11th-hour talks with Meyer Burger after the Swiss solar firm said it would halt production of modules in the country as early as April.

“Everything points to the fact that Chinese manufacturers are selling below their production cost,” Lindahl said, and now the result is “very, very worrying … We’re about to lose the industry in Europe.”

Read the full story here.

Europe’s solar panel manufacturers ask EU for emergency support

BRUSSELS, Jan 30 (Reuters) – Europe’s solar panel manufacturing industry has urged the European Union to step in with emergency measures to avoid local firms shutting down under price pressure from Chinese imports, a letter seen by Reuters showed.

Multiple European solar manufacturers have announced plans to close factories in recent months, citing pressure from a flood of imports and an oversupply of solar panel parts that have piled up in European warehouses and pushed down prices. Reuters has the story.

In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, industry group the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) warned that without rapid help, the EU risked losing more than half of its operational solar photovoltaic module manufacturing capacity within weeks.

“Over the next 4–8 weeks, major EU PV module producers and their European suppliers are poised to shut down manufacturing lines unless substantial emergency measures are promptly implemented,” said the letter, dated Jan. 30.

ESMC asked the EU to launch emergency measures including a scheme to buy up excess inventories of EU solar modules to ease the oversupply, and change state aid rules to boost government support for local solar producers.

If those measures cannot be done rapidly, the EU should also consider “safeguard” measures that could include tariffs and quotas to counter a surge of imports, the letter said.

Read the full here.

Electric van maker once valued at £10bn collapses into administration

ABritish electric van maker once valued at $13bn (£10bn) has gone into administration after burning through $1.5bn without having sold a vehicle.

Arrival appoints EY to find a buyer after shares delisted from Nasdaq following 99.9pc plunge.

ABritish electric van maker once valued at $13bn (£10bn) has gone into administration after burning through $1.5bn without having sold a vehicle.

Oxfordshire-based Arrival has appointed administrators at EY to find a buyer for the business, blaming “challenging market and macroeconomic conditions”. The Telegraph has the story.

Arrival’s Nasdaq flotation in 2021 was the biggest ever for a British company but shares have fallen by 99.98pc as it became clear that the company was unable to service its debts.

“The group’s liquidity position has been impacted by challenging market and macroeconomic conditions resulting in delays in getting the group’s products to market,” the administrators said.

“As such, the Joint Administrators are now exploring options for the sale of the business and assets of the Companies, including its electric vehicle platforms, software, intellectual property and R&D assets, for the benefit of creditors.”

Last week, Arrival said it would be delisted from the Nasdaq after failing to release financial updates or hold an annual meeting. The company has defaulted on its debts despite seeking to cut costs with repeated job losses.

Arrival secured hundreds of millions of investment from the likes of BlackRock, BNP Paribas and Hyundai before going public. Denis Sverdlov, a Russian businessman who founded the company, stepped down as chief executive in 2022.

The company had been seeking a potential sale or investment but EY were appointed administrators of its two UK entities, which own its key assets, on Monday.

Arrival had planned to make electric vans and buses at small, robot-led “microfactories” that would be cheaper to set up than traditional car plants. 

Read the full story here.

After scrapping nuclear reactors, Germany to spend billions on new gas power plants

Berlin has agreed to spend €16 billion to build four major natural gas plants to meet electricity demand in a major overhaul of the country’s energy grid.

The fossil fuel expansion is needed to ensure long-term energy security, according to industry and the government.

Berlin has agreed to spend €16 billion to build four major natural gas plants to meet electricity demand in a major overhaul of the country’s energy grid.

In a statement Monday, officials said the new strategy came “in addition to the consistent expansion of renewable energies,” and was key to ensuring steady power supplies “even in times where there is little sun and wind.” Politico has the story.

The ruling coalition reached the decision following talks between Chancellor Olaf Scholz of the Social Democratic Party and the economy minister, Green Party politician Robert Habeck. The deal provides for a market-based capacity-boosting mechanism to expand electricity generation by 2028.

The government has described the fossil gas power plants as “modern, highly flexible and climate-friendly” because they will be capable of conversion to use clean-burning hydrogen gas produced from renewable sources. The plants are projected to produce up to 10 gigawatts of electricity. Tenders for the projects will begin soon.

German energy firm Uniper, which expects to be involved in the construction, said it was “relieved” that the coalition had reached a political consensus on the new plants, adding that “swift action is urgently needed because the approval process and the actual construction of power plants and storage facilities will take several years.”

Read the full story here.

German property crisis deepens with one of worst falls on record – latest updates 

Germany’s construction sector continued to drag down Europe’s largest economy as its housebuilding industry suffered one of its worst declines on record, a closely-watched survey indicated.

Germany’s construction sector continued to drag down Europe’s largest economy as its housebuilding industry suffered one of its worst declines on record, a closely-watched survey indicated.

The HCOB Germany Construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in at 36.3 in January, down slightly from December’s 37 and among the worst figures ever recorded in the research. The Telegraph has the story.

Dr Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank, said the German construction sector “is extending and deepening its downturn which has been in place since April 2022 for another month, with no near end in sight”. 

It comes after a top German industry chief despaired that Olaf Scholz’s net zero policies are “absolutely toxic” in a stinging criticism of the chancellor’s leadership.

Siegfried Russwurm, head of the BDI, said his country’s climate agenda is “more dogmatic than any other country I know”.

He warned that Germany was being placed at a disadvantage because of the government’s phasing out of nuclear energy and switching to renewables from coal and gas.

“Nobody can say with any certainty today what our energy supply will look like in seven years’ time, and that’s why no one can say how high energy prices will be in Germany then,” he told the Financial Times. 

“For companies that have to make investment decisions, that is absolutely toxic.”

Germany’s economy shrank by 0.3pc last year, while the OECD said its gross domestic product would expand by just 1.1pc in 2024.

Read the full story here .

Germany’s energy future threatened: Biden stops LNG exports

Germany is facing a devastating energy crisis that is seriously threatening its security of supply. US President Joe Biden has unexpectedly halted the expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG), putting Germany in a precarious position.

From Blackout News

Germany is facing a devastating energy crisis that is seriously threatening its security of supply. US President Joe Biden has unexpectedly halted the expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG), putting Germany in a precarious position.

The country has relied heavily on LNG from the US to become independent of Russian pipeline gas. Biden’s decision now has far-reaching implications that could pose serious problems for German energy policy (berliner-zeitung: 26.01.24).

Germany in Energy Crisis: How Biden’s Decision Threatens Germany’s Energy Supply

Biden has halted construction projects for new LNG terminals for the time being, stressing the importance of climate protection in the face of the climate crisis. The U.S. is the world’s largest exporter of LNG, but the U.S. government has put new export terminals on hold for now.

Germany in Energy Crisis: How US President Biden’s Decision Threatens Germany’s Energy Supply

This has implications for Germany, as it has sourced most of its LNG from the US, especially after saying goodbye to Russian gas. Representatives of the U.S. energy industry have turned to the U.S. government about Europe’s jobs and security of supply, but the focus is on climate protection.

Permits have already been issued for some terminal projects, but new export licenses will not be issued for the time being. This affects four ongoing projects and could affect Germany’s energy supply.

Germany in the LNG crisis – hedge funds are already betting on price losses of German companies

Much of Germany’s LNG comes from the US, where it is often extracted using fracking. However, the origin and composition of the LNG are not always clear.

Investors have raised concerns about Germany’s energy policy before Biden made his decision. A hedge fund founder criticized German policies and sees favorable conditions for energy companies such as RWE AG, Engie SA and SSE Plc.

Anglo-Saxon hedge funds have placed short positions against German companies, fearing a slump in global demand and price losses. Qube Research & Technologies has bet more than $1 billion against German companies, including Volkswagen and Deutsche Bank.

Germany must act urgently to secure its energy future

Some market observers point out that short selling must be reported, while betting on rising prices does not have to. In addition, many funds use short positions to hedge their investments.

Deutsche Umwelthilfe and Greenpeace welcome Biden’s decision and demand that Germany also review and stop LNG projects, as they are incompatible with climate protection.

Overall, Germany is facing challenging times in terms of energy policy, as it must look for new solutions for its energy supply, while at the same time looking at the environmental impact.

Inside the battle to recharge Britain’s slowing electric car market

When Rishi Sunak delayed the UK’s ban on new petrol car sales, he was at pains to stress it should be consumers, not the Government, who drive the switch to electric vehicles.

The Tories are facing growing calls to support EV sales in the upcoming Budget.

When Rishi Sunak delayed the UK’s ban on new petrol car sales, he was at pains to stress it should be consumers, not the Government, who drive the switch to electric vehicles.

Yet since his remarks, car industry insiders have become increasingly frustrated at what many see as mixed messages emerging from Downing Street. 

Despite pushing back the petrol car ban, the Prime Minister left in place targets that will force manufacturers to rapidly ramp up EV sales anyway from this year. The Telegraph has the story.

“In terms of messaging, it was slightly peculiar,” says Mike Hawes, chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 

It is this confusion that is partly being blamed for the slow-motion car crash now unfolding in EV sales, with industry figures published on Monday showing that their market share slipped from 19.7pc in December to just 14.7pc in January.

That was after annual figures showed the proportion of car sales that were electric slipped from 16.6pc in 2022 to 16.5pc in 2023, the first time the EV segment has gone into reverse. 

The malaise is sending shock waves through the car industry at a time when manufacturers are already grappling with a string of other headaches. 

Among the problems facing carmakers include poor charging infrastructure and high interest rates, which have pushed up the cost of financing deals. 

A House of Lords report released on Tuesday urges ministers to grab the wheel and swerve to avert disaster.

“If we’re going to get to net zero in 2050, we’ve got to address surface transport, because that accounts for 23pc of our emissions,” says Baroness Parminter, chairman of the environment and climate change committee. 

“And if the Government is serious about meeting its targets, then it needs to use all the levers at its disposal.

“The message the public got from the delay in the [petrol car] ban was ‘This is not something that we need to worry about now’.”

Sunak’s net zero speech emphasised the high upfront cost of EVs, but ministers have done little to address the issue since then. 

Manufacturers argue the Prime Minister has in fact made things worse by withdrawing benefits for EV drivers.

The “plug in grant” for EVs previously allowed drivers to knock £2,500 off the price of their purchase but was withdrawn in June 2022, for example, while from March 2025 EV drivers will lose their current exemption from paying vehicle excise duty (more commonly known as road tax). 

At the same time, the Government is tightening the screws on car manufacturers through the so-called Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate.

This requires 22pc of new cars sold this year to be ZEVs, rising to 28pc in 2025, 52pc in 2028 and 80pc by 2030. Manufacturers who fail to meet the targets must pay fines or cover shortfalls through an emissions trading scheme.

Hawes, at the SMMT, says this mixed bag of policies is stimulating supply while doing too little to boost demand. 

“We’re moving from the early adopter phase to the mass market phase,” he says, “and if you are to achieve net zero, this must be a mass market technology. It can’t just be for those who are most keen. 

“So the decision to turn off the incentives does look like it was taken too early.”

Other issues that have plagued EVs include a rapid fall in values and huge insurance premiums, pushing up running costs for drivers. 

Read the full story here.