Germany 'on course' to reach 2030 climate goals

BERLIN

Germany on March 15 said that it was on track to meet its 2030 climate goals for the first time, after a sharp drop in greenhouse gas emissions last year.

An increase in the use of renewables and a weaker economy weighed down by higher energy costs had contributed to a 10.1-percent plunge in carbon emissions year-on-year, the economy ministry said.

Germany, Europe's biggest economy, aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 65 percent by 2030 and achieve climate neutrality by 2045.

The latest report from Germany's federal environment agency (UBA) showed that emissions were now projected to fall by almost 64 percent by 2030, compared with 1990 levels.

In a 2021 report, that figure was estimated at just 49 percent.

"The projection shows for the first time that we are on course and that we can achieve the 2030 climate protection goals," Economy Minister Robert Habeck said at a Berlin press conference.

The optimism comes after Germany lowered its CO2 emissions by 76 million tons last year to 673 million tons, the biggest reduction since German reunification.

The drop was in large part driven by an industrial downturn, as companies in energy-intensive sectors such as aluminum, steel and chemical production were battered by higher energy prices and lower demand.

Coal use also declined as Germany became a net importer of electricity in 2023. Around 60 percent of those energy imports, mainly from Scandinavian countries, came from renewable sources.