Germany takes 'bitter' decision to fire up coal power plants as Russia chokes off its vital natural gas supplies
Germany has taken a “bitter” decision to fire up idle coal power plants to reduce its reliance on Russian natural gas, as Vladimir Putin throttles supplies to the country.
Gazprom, the state-controlled Russian energy company, cut natural gas flows through the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany by around 60% last week.
The German economy ministry said on Sunday that idle coal power plants are already being upgraded so they can soon start generating electricity again. It said emergency laws would allow Germany to boost the generation of electricity from coal for a limited period until March 2024.
Related Knowledge Center: Energy security and pricing
The United States achieved net energy independence in 2020, but that has not insulated the nation from the roiling of energy markets in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Europe has been a large consumer of Russian natural gas, and the effort to wean itself, with the help of the United States, has strained markets and endangered global efforts to address the climate crisis.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: coal
The use of coal, a staple of heating and electricity-generation for decades, is in decline in the United States — supplanted by newly abundant production of natural gas — but is still dominant in some parts of the world. While economical, coal use is particularly problematic as international attention focuses increasingly on climate change.