By P Gosselin
Professor Fritz Vahrenholt revisits Germany’s transition to green energies (Energiewende), calling the country’s exit from nuclear power a huge mistake, one that even the current government now acknowledges.
Prof. Fritz Vahrenholt (photo) looks at the high costs of green energy subsidies in Germany. In 2025, wind and solar operators received approximately €16.5 billion in government subsidies from the Climate and Transformation Fund. And due to fixed feed-in tariffs, investors end up benefitting twice: during oversupply (electricity prices near zero), the state pays the difference; during scarcity (high prices up to 40 ct/kWh), they pocket extra profits.
Vahrenholt calls this redistribution “socially unjust”, as it is financed by tenants and motorists (via CO2 pricing) while benefiting wealthy investors.
And despite the recent global turmoil (the closure of the Strait of Hormuz), the German federal government is still stubbornly sticking to its ban of both nuclear energy and domestic shale gas production. Ther country is also moving forward with the coal phase-out.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz, beholden to his SPD leftist coalition partners, refuses to initiate any real course change. Proposals by Economy Minister Katherina Reiche to reform the system are being rejected by the SPD and the Greens as an attack on the “success model of the energy transition.” The reality, however, is that it’s been a complete debacle.
Vahreholt advocates for a return to nuclear energy (using subsidy billions to build new plants), the use of domestic shale gas, and the continued operation of coal-fired power plants. The move away from nuclear power under Merkel (2011) is described as a historic blunder that has cost around €500 billion to date and led to the current rapid deindustrialization.
Germany is in deep trouble.
