Discussions about the amendment to the Building Energy Act by Economics Minister Habeck have been going on for weeks. The media tries with some success to distract from the main weak point. According to the law, from 2024 only heating systems that are operated with “at least” 65% renewable energies should be installed. The government relies primarily on the heat pump, which is operated with electricity. But the German electricity mix is only about 45 percent renewable energy. Nevertheless, heat pumps are considered climate-neutral – what an illusion!
Heat pumps and renewable energy: The questionable CO₂ balance and the illusion of climate neutrality
Even with a supposedly climate-neutral heat pump, a share of 65% renewable energy is not possible. The share of renewables in electricity production is currently only around 45%. But even the 45 percent is deceptive, because it represents an average over the entire year. The vast majority of this is generated by renewables in summer, when the heating is usually switched off. In winter, when the solar systems hardly produce any electricity, the share of renewable energies is much smaller. If the heat is urgently needed, fossil fuels, especially gas, have to step in. The federal government is therefore planning to construct gas-fired power plants with a total capacity of 20,000 MW by 2030. These should secure the power supply and prevent the risk of a blackout. Hardly any investors can be found for this. That’s why Habeck has now applied to the EU to be allowed to bring more coal-fired power plants back on line in winter (Blackout-News: 04.06.23).
In winter, therefore, the heat pump cannot fulfil the 65 per cent renewable energy requirement at all. Professor Fritz Vahrenholt has even calculated that heat pumps emit more CO₂ than gas and almost as much as oil. (eike-klima-energie: 07.04.23). So there is no CO₂ saving. How then is this technology supposed to be a contribution to “achieving national climate protection targets”? To
Debates about the supposedly “technology-open” law on building energy.
Economics Minister Habeck argues that alternative solutions such as green or blue hydrogen could be used as a climate-neutral alternative. But hydrogen has a price about four times higher than gas, if it is available at all. Habeck made a cynical comment on this, saying that “openness to technology” also includes the possibility of using more expensive heating systems.
However, the public debate around the amendment focuses mainly on side issues such as the shift of the age limit for the mandatory replacement of heating systems from 80 to 65 years and the increase of subsidies as well as exemptions (Merkur: 02.06.23).
Habeck now invited the members of the traffic light coalition to negotiations in order to persuade them, with a few unimportant concessions, to rush the law through parliament before the summer break. It raises questions about what an appropriate “parliamentary procedure” should look like if all three readings are to be held within only three weeks. It is not apparent why it is imperative to act so quickly, other than the fact that dissent will not be tolerated and will be vigorously suppressed.
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