Germany, one
of the world’s biggest consumers of coal, will shut down all 84 of its coal-fired
power plants over the next 19 years to meet its international commitments in
the fight against climate change, a government commission said Saturday.
The
announcement marked a significant shift for Europe’s largest country — a nation
that had long been a leader on cutting CO2 emissions before turning into a
laggard in recent years and badly missing its reduction targets. Coal plants
account for 40% of Germany’s electricity, itself a reduction from recent years
when coal dominated power production.
“This is an
historic accomplishment,” said Ronald Pofalla, chairman of the 28-member
government commission, at a news conference in Berlin following a marathon
21-hour negotiating session that concluded at 6 a.m. Saturday. The breakthrough
ended seven months of wrangling. “It was anything but a sure thing. But we did
it,” Pofalla said. “There won’t be any more coal-burning plants in Germany by
2038.”
The plan
includes some $45 billion in spending to mitigate the pain in coal regions. The
commission’s recommendations are expected to be adopted by Chancellor Angela
Merkel’s government.
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