Gas heating ban at Anne Will: “We are at the beginning of the consultation”

Gas heating ban at Anne Will
“We are at the beginning of the deliberations”

By Marko Schlichting

A draft law from the Federal Ministry of Economics is causing displeasure and confusion. Minister Habeck wants to ban the installation of new gas and oil heating systems from January 1, 2024. The guests at Anne Will agree: we need to talk about it again.

Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck from the Greens had a cuckoo’s egg in his nest: Apparently earlier than planned he presented a bill. According to this, from January 1, 2024, no more gas and oil heating systems may be installed in houses. Habeck wants to promote the installation of heat pumps, which should be financially supported. With what, Habeck does not yet know. Not even who installs the new systems. Because there is not only a lack of money, but also of skilled workers. The FDP has already filed a need for discussion and suggested that the draft law should be withdrawn so that it can be sent to the “assembly hall”. There is already the draft for the next federal budget from Finance Minister Christian Lindner. The FDP chairman actually wanted to present it this week. But now it is clear that there is not enough money for the demands of the individual departments.

On Sunday evening, Anne Will wants to talk to her guests about Robert Habeck’s draft law on ARD. All guests seem to be more or less in agreement: This is not the greatest success. You just say it differently.

Omid Nouripour for example. “We are at the beginning of the deliberations,” said the Green leader. He has the feeling that people fear that they will no longer be allowed to use the gas or oil heating systems they already have. Don’t be like that. It’s all about installing new heaters. Germany has decided to convert its energy supply by 2045. Since gas or oil heating usually lasts up to 30 years, you have to start switching to heat pumps now. The traffic light coalition still has to talk about the corresponding financing. “We have made a long-term agreement on climate protection. And people want to know what pays off in the long term.”

FDP parliamentary group leader Christian Dürr is particularly bothered by the fact that the draft law only prioritizes the installation of heat pumps. “I suggest we stay energy-open,” he says at Anne Will. “We have the unfortunate situation that the share of fossil fuels in the electricity mix has grown because of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine.” Even a heat pump is not really going to run in an environmentally friendly way at the moment. Dürr can imagine using hydrogen for heating in the long term.

Future hydrogen heating?

Hydrogen heaters are one of the Liberals’ pet projects. In fact, under certain circumstances, you can use it to heat energy-neutrally. Hydrogen can release energy in two ways: through combustion or through a chemical reaction. In both cases, heat is generated, and in “cold combustion” also electricity. The problem here is the high amount of energy required to produce hydrogen. There is also a lack of a functioning infrastructure, i.e. a hydrogen network through which it could be fed. Heating with hydrogen could be an exciting option at some point, but that will take a very long time.

Henrike Rossbach from the Süddeutsche Zeitung can understand that many people are not satisfied with the draft law. The federal government is now trying to use a crowbar to enforce what has been neglected in recent years. Norway, for example, created the right incentive for people to decide to switch to renewable energies back in the early 1990s with the introduction of a CO2 tax.

Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil thinks it’s good that the Ministry of Economics has presented a draft law. “However, the ministry is taking it a step and a half too quickly,” complains the SPD politician. Implementing the law on January 1st is unrealistic. “I think it would be wiser to have talks with the different industries now about what is possible in which period and how we can best do it.”

You also have to talk to the citizens, says CDU politician Gitta Connemann, who is also chairwoman of the SME and Economic Union. “Climate protection only works with people, not against them,” she says at Anne Will. The installation of heat pumps, which nobody can afford anyway, is not enough. Many buildings would have to be renovated, because 64 percent of the building envelopes came from before 1979 and were constantly absorbing CO2. Ultimately, a lower-CO2 electricity mix was needed, which would also have to include nuclear power.

The law will not come like that, Dürr sums up the view of all the guests of the show. But it is right to talk about its design. There is an LNG terminal in Wilhelmshaven, and others will soon start operating. “And they are all hydrogen-ready. We are making great strides there,” believes Dürr.

And what did viewers of the Anne Will talk show on Sunday night learn? At least that in the end you don’t eat anything as hot as it is cooked. And in a figurative sense, that also applies to draft laws by Economics Minister Habeck.

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