To: koan who wrote (765530 ) 1/24/2014 2:07:19 PM From: Bilow 1 RecommendationRecommended By
Read Replies (1) | Respond to Hi koan; Re: "How does replacing coal with green energy destroy our society? You say these things like they are well founded when in actuality you just pulled it out of your ass. ";Germany Seeks to Trim Subsidies for Renewable Energy Germany's economy and energy minister laid out Tuesday proposals to curb renewable energy subsidies and cap electricity prices but opponents fear they could jeopardise the country's much vaunted green energy transition. Just weeks after taking over as Economy and Energy Minister in Chancellor Angela Merkel's left-right "grand coalition", Social Democrat Sigmar Gabriel presented a blueprint to meet what he described as "the biggest challenge currently facing our country." He wants to start by trimming subsidies for renewable sources of energy , a keystone in the so-called energy transition that Europe's top economy embarked on 15 years ago under its then Social Democrat chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. The strategy has been pursued with even greater intensity by his conservative successor Merkel after the 2011 Fukushima disaster in Japan persuaded her to gradually abandon nuclear energy completely. Generous subsidies—financed via an energy tax—have meant that renewables now account for around a quarter of energy production and consumption in Germany. And the aim is for renewables to meet as much as 80 percent of the country's energy needs by 2050. But the tax has caused energy prices to shoot up, adding as much as 24 billion euros ($32 billion) to industry's power bills, according to Gabriel. "We must be careful not to bite off more than we can chew," he argued, pointing out that the manufacturing industry remains the backbone of the German economy. By the summer, the subsidy system has to be revamped to target "the most promising technologies," namely wind and solar power. And the pace of development in those sectors should be monitored more closely. phys.org Spain's Solar-Power Collapse Dims Subsidy Model (2009) In 2008, Spain accounted for half the world's new solar-power installations in terms of wattage, thanks to government subsidies to promote clean energy. But late last year, as the global economic crisis worsened, the government dramatically scaled back those subsidies and capped the amount of subsidized solar power that could be installed. online.wsj.com EU Signals End to High Subsidies for Renewable Energies The European Commission issued new guidelines Tuesday which could end costly and controversial subsidies for renewable energy, opening the way for state-aid backing of gas or coal-fired electricity generation projects. "The ultimate aim of the market is to deliver secure and affordable energy for our citizens and business," EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said. solardaily.com South Africa Cuts Proposed Green Energy Subsidies reuters.com European Commission to ditch legally-binding renewable energy targets telegraph.co.uk Blown away? US Suspends Wind Power Subsidies, for now globalpost.com Green Dream on ice as 'coal frenzy' grips Europe and Renewables lose their attraction IT'S been a black Christmas for green thinkers as Germany, the world leader in rooftop solar and pride of the renewable energy revolution has confirmed its rapid return to coal. After scrapping nuclear power, Germany's carbon dioxide emissions are back on the rise as the country clamours to reopen some of the dirtiest brown coalmines that have been closed since the reunification of east and west. theaustralian.com.au European green energy fears losing investments on ‘weak’ targets Wind and solar power producers said they’re at risk of losing investment after the European Union’s executive arm scrapped proposals for a mandatory target on renewable energy in 2030.should get 27 percent of its energy from renewables by 2030, up from 20 percent at the end of this decade. Unlike the current goal, the new one won’t be split into national targets. head of political affairs for the European Wind Energy Association, said in an interview yesterday. “It was a communications gimmick rather than a real target. How do we determine the EU has met its target if it has no obligations on member states ? It’s hard to imagine the EU will take itself to court and fine itself.” fuelfix.com
