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It’s good to see that I am not the only person looking critically at Germany’s rather inept attempt to switch over to green energy sources in order to reduce CO2 emissions.

The environmentalprogress.org site here presents a good overview of Germany’s recent performance when it comes to reducing so-called “greenhouse gases”. Unfortunately German citizens have not seen any success recently for the tens of billions of euros they are paying extra for the “Energiewende” (transition to renewable energy).

A new Environmental Progress analysis finds that “German emissions increased in 2016 for a second year in a row“, blaming the result on “the country closing one of its nuclear plants and replacing it with coal and natural gas“. Obviously wind and sun failed to step in and do the job.

Environmental Progress reports the shocking result:

Not only did new solar and wind not make up for the lost nuclear, the percentage of time during 2016 that solar and wind produced electricity declined dramatically. Germany added a whopping 10 percent more wind turbine capacity and 2.5 percent more solar panel capacity between 2015 and 2016, but generated less than one percent more electricity from wind and generated one percent less electricity from solar.”

The site describes Germany’s wild variability that the country has to deal with producing power from sun and wind.

2016’s rise to 916 gigatonnes of CO2 extends Germany’s streak of failing to lower its CO2 emissions to 8 years. The following chart goes to 2014. The year 2015 saw 908 gigatonnes CO2 emissions compared to 902 in 2014.

Chart source: UBA Umweltbundesamt (Federal Office of the Environment).

This means Germany literally has made virtually no progress at all over the past decade. The latest jump in CO2 emissions make the chances of Germany reaching its 2020 CO2 reductions target even far more remote. Add to this that subsidies for wind and solar power recently have been watered down and the surge of up to 2 million refugees will boost demand for energy. Germany’s commitment to fulfilling the Paris Agreement is looking like a real farce.

Another fact that shows that solar and wind will never work: Environmental Progress points out that even if Germany adds 50% more solar panel capacity by 2030, it will boost solar’s share of power from 6% to 9 percent.

Germany’s Energiewende has only succeeded in massively elevating Germany’s consumer power prices, making its power almost twice as expensive as power in neighboring France, which relies heavily on nuclear. While France’s power is half the cost, the country also emits far less CO2 from electricity production:

Chart source: http://www.environmentalprogress.org.

That’s what one would call success. Why some countries are still racing into the renewable energy foray despite the German debacle, remains a mystery.

Read all of the Environmental Progress report here.