Robert Habeck and Christian Lindner (right) have agreed on the investment package.
(Photo: dpa)
Berlin The federal government wants to spend 200 billion euros on climate change and greater independence from oil and gas imports in the coming years. Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) and Climate Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) agreed on this in the ongoing budget deliberations for 2022 and the following years, both confirmed on Sunday.
“This government is making more than 200 billion euros available for energy security and climate protection by 2026,” Habeck told the Reuters news agency. This is a nice success after intensive negotiations. “More than ever we need to invest in our energy sovereignty.”
Lindner said on ARD that the money should flow, for example, for the construction of e-charging stations, hydrogen production or the curbing of the electricity price by abolishing the surcharge for renewable energies. In order to use it effectively, planning must be accelerated or bureaucracy reduced.
A climate and transformation fund (KTF) is planned in the budget for the energy, transport or industrial transition, which is to be equipped with the money. In comparison to the plans of the old government, it should now increase by 90 billion euros, according to government circles. In addition, there are 20 billion euros in so-called commitment authorizations. This is usually decided when the exact need is not yet foreseeable.
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In this case, they should primarily be used for the planned climate agreements with industry. This is intended to initiate the restructuring of the steel, chemical and cement industries. With the contracts between the federal government and companies, the state bears the additional costs for the use of “green” production technology compared to conventional production.
The federal government wants to advance the energy transition with billions in investments.
(Photo: dpa)
If the costs of environmentally friendly production fall over the years and at the same time production with coal or gas becomes more and more expensive because of the climate tax, the contracts expire or the companies even pay back money. These so-called CCFDs (Carbon Contracts for Difference) are considered a key instrument for the transformation of the industry.
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