Adoption of the climate protection report

Commenting on the adoption of the Climate Protection Report 2017 by the Federal Cabinet today, Wednesday, Ralph Bahke, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Transmission System Operators (FNB Gas) states:

“The German government is falling far short of the climate protection target it set itself for 2020 – the climate protection report adopted today is bad news for German energy and environmental policy. At the same time, it is also an appeal to all those involved in politics and business: only if we make increased efforts together in all sectors can the ambitious targets to which Germany committed itself at the Paris Climate Conference be achieved at all. The German transmission system operators stand by their responsibility: the consistent continuation of holistic and intelligent sector coupling, i.e. the interconnection of gas, electricity, heat and mobility structures as well as industry, offers the opportunity to achieve the national and the binding European climate protection targets for 2030.”

FNB Gas Managing Director Inga Posch continues: “It is high time to set the course. The target model developed by the transmission system operators uses the existing gas infrastructure in Germany in combination with climate-neutral green gas – in this way, not only can CO2 be reduced in an almost completely decarbonized economy (95 percent target for 2050), but costs can also be cut significantly. The solidly developed gas infrastructure can serve as a transport and storage system for renewably generated gas in the future via power-to-gas technology, thus replacing CO2-intensive energy sources in the long term.”