SUMMARY:
Germany is phasing out
nuclear power, which has
no CO2 emissions.
Germany is
also a rare coal-
producing nation
that takes it's
CO2 emission
commitments
very seriously.
It leads the
European Union
drive to decrease
CO2 emissions.
The planned 2038
phase out of hard coal
(all imported) use
may be feasible.
But replacing
German lignite
will be tough --
it's cheap, and
located next to
large urban areas.
Lignite,
often referred to
as brown coal,
is a soft, brown,
combustible,
sedimentary rock
formed from
naturally compressed
peat. It is considered
the lowest rank of coal
due to its relatively low
heat content.
The nation’s
industrial output
will be less
competitive
and will
be smaller
without having
inexpensive,
consistent nuclear
power (from existing
plants), coal power
and lignite power.
Throughout
the world,
the world,
when production
is not cut by any
government
policies,
coal producers
simply extract
as much coal
as possible.
Germany has
large reserves
of coal, lignite
in particular.
Germany is the
world’s largest
producer of lignite.
Lignite is burned for
22% of the nation’s
gross electricity output.
Lignite production
is done by
extraction from
open-cast pits, and
is more CO2 intensive
than hard coal.
Lignite remains
economically
competitive.
But Germany’s hard coal
production went downhill
after the government
ended its subsidy.
The last German
hard coal mine
closed in
December 2018,
ending a 200-year
history of the
Ruhr Region.
But Germany
continues to use
hard coal,
imported primarily
from Russia, Canada
and the United States.
Based on
monthly statistics
in the past three years,
53% of all imported
hard coal came in
from Russia.
The German
steel sector
consumes
almost 40%.
Hard coal is used
for around 12%
of electric power
generation.
Hard coal is
economically
unviable, and
underutilized
( only 6GW of the
existing 20GW
hard coal power
plant capacity
was used in 2019 ) .
For 2019, both lignite
and hard coal usage
dropped a whopping
20% year-on-year,
from mandatory
carbon emissions
prices, renewables
being prioritized
for grid access,
and a weak German
manufacturing sector.
For Germany, in 2019:
Coal usage dropped
by -20.5 million tons
of coal equivalent (mtce).
Renewables usage rose
by +3 million tons mtce.
Power from renewables
grew by only 3% in 2019.
Natural gas usage
increased by +4 mtce.