As of: March 13, 2024, 11:09 a.m
By: Lars-Eric Nievelstein
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The traffic light coalition wants to make industrial production more sustainable.
So-called climate protection agreements are intended to promote hydrogen expansion.
It's about billions.
Berlin – The goal has been set: Germany should reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2045.
One of the newer means of achieving this is climate protection agreements, through which billions are intended to flow into industrial production.
In the first bidding process, four billion euros will go to companies in the energy-intensive industry.
And that is just the beginning.
Auction is ongoing – climate protection agreements are intended to promote “industrial plants of tomorrow”.
The first bidding process for the climate protection contracts funding program has been running since March 12th.
Companies can apply within the next four months - the winners will receive 15 years of funding for their transformation projects.
“Today is a good day for Germany as an industrial location, for climate protection and sustainable jobs in our country,” said Federal Economics and Climate Protection Minister Robert Habeck (Greens).
“With the climate protection agreements, we are promoting modern, climate-friendly industrial plants of tomorrow.”
Robert Habeck laying the foundation stone for a large-scale wastewater heat pump from Vattenfall.
The traffic light coalition wants to make industrial production more sustainable.
So-called climate protection agreements are intended to promote hydrogen expansion.
It's about billions.
© IMAGO / Future Image
The government's primary goal is to create new technologies, value chains and infrastructure.
In the end, global industry should also benefit from this and make it easier to switch to climate-friendly production.
“The subsidized systems from the first round of bids alone will save several million tons of CO₂,” promised Habeck.
Specifically, the funding through climate protection agreements is intended to prevent around 350 million CO₂ emissions by 2045.
According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, Germany is the first EU member state to use such funding.
“Investments in fossil technologies are no longer economical for heavy industry and investments in climate-neutral options are still too risky,” said Karsten Neuhoff from DIW.
“Climate protection agreements now hedge CO2 and energy price risks and thus enable investments in the transformation.”
Climate protection contracts in detail – the most favorable planning is awarded the contract
What are climate protection agreements exactly?
Basically, it is a kick-off financing that is intended to ensure that new industrial plants are built in Germany.
This in turn results (at least according to the plan) in a “much faster” development of transformative technologies.
And these technologies help to achieve the sustainability goals set.
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The climate protection agreements rely on competitive bidding procedures.
Companies must indicate what their costs would be to reduce CO₂ emissions.
Those companies with cost-effective planning will be awarded the contract.
The individual funding amount is then calculated from the respective bid price.
Basically, the state buys emissions reductions, and the companies receiving funding then have to deliver.
“The climate protection agreements open up completely new development and innovation opportunities – especially for industries with high energy consumption.
Energy-intensive companies can now use new technologies and switch to climate-friendly energy.
This gives them a pioneering role nationally and internationally on the path to climate neutrality,” explained Habeck.
Where does the funding go?
According to the information page of the climate protection agreements, the funding only goes to projects that serve the “direct decarbonization of industrial production processes”.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs specifically named production facilities and pipelines for hydrogen.
Importantly, projects that serve “exclusively the production of secondary energy sources” are not eligible for funding – this includes hydrogen itself. Where it comes from is irrelevant.
That's exactly what Greenpeace came up with and caused criticism.
According to
n-tv
, the chairman of Greenpeace Germany had demanded that only the use of green hydrogen should be promoted.
This refers to hydrogen that comes from wind and solar energy production.
Habeck had rejected this - without hydrogen, which is also produced through the use of fossil fuels, achieving the climate goals would not be possible.
The national hydrogen strategy is one of the federal government's most important measures for the energy transition.
The first round of bidding runs until June.
Companies that do not receive funding in this first round can reapply in later rounds.