The energy ministers of the federal states are meeting today and tomorrow for consultations in Saxony-Anhalt. When it comes to a topic, they push the pace.
The energy ministers of the federal states are pushing for an accelerated development of the hydrogen economy in Germany. At the conference of department heads in Merseburg (Saxony-Anhalt), several applications are to be discussed on Thursday.
The federal government should transfer corresponding EU standards into national law as quickly as possible, said Saxony-Anhalt’s Energy Minister Armin Willingmann. The SPD politician is chairman of the Energy Ministers’ Conference this year.
Willingmann assumes that the economy will continue to depend on imports in the future. “Basically, you have to realize that the fourth largest economy in the world will not be energy self-sufficient,” he said. One could become more independent, “but we will never be able to do without energy imports completely”. That is why European networking in the energy market is important, and reliable international partners are needed. “Nation-state solutions are really absurd in the energy sector.”
Habeck: Concept for industrial electricity price
Willingmann emphasized that hydrogen should ensure the energy supply for industry in the future. “We will never be able to produce it ourselves in the required quantities. We are therefore still dependent on having partners in the world for whom this may also be an interesting business model.”
At the conference, the department heads also want to discuss the introduction of lower electricity prices for industrial companies. Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) has already announced that he intends to present a concept for an industrial electricity price. The German economy has been complaining for a long time about energy costs, which are very high in international comparison.
A total of 17 draft resolutions are to be discussed at the conference. It should also be about accelerating planning and approval procedures as part of the energy transition, about the reconstruction of the solar industry in Europe and the network infrastructure. The results will be presented on Thursday afternoon.
Source: Stern
