Night session at the Chancellery: Climate change is delayed - Klingbeil advertises for understanding

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It takes, with the climate coalition of the coalition heads of CDU, CSU and SPD in the Chancellery: On Friday morning, SPD General Secretary Lars Klingbeil has sought to understand the long negotiations of coalition leaders on the climate package.

Climate protection would demand something of society, the challenges are "huge" when it comes to the carbon leakage or, for example, the expansion of renewable energy.

In the negotiations on the strategy of the Federal Government for more climate protection, after no more than eleven-hour nightly discussions, there was no sign of an end.

Now it is clear: the coalition postponed the crucial meeting of the climate cabinet planned for the morning. Instead, as planned, at 11 o'clock, the Climate Cabinet is called together for 13 o'clock

"Since I prefer that an hour longer is negotiated - but it is then ambitious," said Klingbeil Deutschlandfunk on Friday morning, while Union and SPD still advised in the Chancellery.

One issue is the CO2 price

The meeting began on Thursday evening at 22 o'clock. Only in the early afternoon does the coalition want to present its climate strategy to the public.

According to the news agency dpa, the leaders of the CDU, CSU and SPD deliberated on separate rounds in the early morning hours to then discuss the results together again. It hooked it apparently at several points.

In a marathon meeting, the leaders of the black-red coalition are looking for an agreement on a far-reaching climate strategy. In the early morning, therefore, the price of emissions of the climate-damaging greenhouse gas carbon dioxide was struggling above all.

Gasoline and diesel, natural gas, heating oil and coal could become more expensive through a national trade in CO2 pollution rights. In the debate was a minimum and a maximum price - so that the fuel and heating oil price is not through the ceiling and consumers are not overwhelmed.

A carbon price in traffic and buildings would flush billions into the state coffers. The coalition wants to use the money but for relief of citizens and businesses - such as the high electricity price.

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20 to 30 pages of key points are expected - but when?

In addition, there should be incentives for a more environmentally friendly behavior. In order to save greenhouse gases during heating, climate-friendly renovations - such as new windows, insulation or new heating systems - could be better promoted, through subsidies and through tax rebates. It was also indisputable to make train tickets in long-distance transport cheaper by lowering VAT. For old oil heaters there could be a scrapping premium. The state purchase premium for e-cars could be increased, as well as the number of charging points.

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It was expected that this Friday, first of all, a 20 to 30-page key issues paper will be adopted. A more detailed, several hundred pages long strategy paper should follow in a few weeks. A draft of this long program said that there would be "investing in climate-friendly measures in the hundreds of billions" by 2030.

Around 300 million fewer tons - that's the goal

The Federal Government's goal is to reduce Germany's greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, from the current figure of around 866 million to 563 million tons a year. Currently, the Federal Republic rips its own and EU-binding targets, threatened with high fines.

There was talk about the accelerated expansion of renewable energies and the acceptance of wind turbines, for example. This is one of the key questions. It was said shortly before midnight that an agreement had not yet been reached on these points.

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The aim of the coalition is to increase the share of green electricity to 65 percent by 2030 - just about 38 percent. 2022 is the last nuclear power plant off the net, 2038 should be no later than the end of the coal power generation. But how and where exactly more solar plants and wind turbines are to be created is highly controversial. Because locally there is often fierce resistance of the local residents. In the first half of the year, the expansion of wind power on land had almost come to a standstill. Reason are long approval procedures, too little space for new wind farms and many lawsuits.