Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock tried last week to send German support to the beleaguered Ukraine. Germany will soon set up an office for “hydrogen diplomacy” in the Ukrainian capital. As irrelevant as this promise is in view of the acute military threat posed by Russia, the idea is correct in view of Ukraine’s potential to produce green hydrogen on its large area of land with renewable energy sources.
This is a business with a future. When viewed soberly, even the greatest optimists have to admit that Germany will never succeed in securing a CO2-free energy supply without massive imports of green energy. Apart from the fact that any striving for self-sufficiency would be misplaced in view of the already high trade surpluses and geopolitical stability. The right priority is therefore to promote the development of corresponding capacities in other countries at an early stage.
Despite a declining share of around eight percent in global CO2 emissions, the EU wants to set an example in climate protection. Whether the world will then follow this example depends crucially on what consequences this project has for the prosperity of its citizens. Unfortunately, we have to assume that the path to climate neutrality will be unnecessarily expensive and therefore not very worthy of imitation.
The better alternative: reduce CO2 emissions
It would be better to help the world to reduce CO2 emissions as part of the world’s climate foreign policy. The following calculation shows how much we might achieve with this: According to the Federal Environment Agency, Germany generates 810 million tons of CO2 per year. The BDI puts the costs of converting the German economy to climate neutrality at 1.5 to 2.3 trillion euros, even under the most favorable conditions. This results in costs of around 2,500 euros per tonne of CO2.
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According to calculations by Goldman Sachs, 35 gigatonnes can be saved worldwide for less than $200 per tonne, more than half of it for well under $100. If we assume an average of $100 per ton, we might save 20 gigatons with our financial effort alone. This corresponds to more than 50 percent of the global CO2 emissions of around 39 gigatonnes. Not only would we have a much larger effect, it should also occur much faster.
At the climate summit in Glasgow, it was decided that climate measures implemented in other countries should be counted towards one’s own target. Excluding this and trying to be a role model with expensive measures, as the EU and the federal government are doing, does little for the climate and endangers prosperity.
Anyone who is serious regarding climate protection should try to make a difference internationally quickly with a real climate foreign policy.
More: “Unfulfillable dream” – climate neutrality of buildings by 2045 is hardly achievable.
