MUNICH, Sept 6 (Reuters) – European Union energy commissioner Gunether Oettinger on Monday welcomed Germany’s nuclear energy move made by the government on Sunday, saying plans to grant nuclear plants longer life cycles tied in with wider energy plans for the bloc.

Talking to reporters at an energy conference in Munich, he said: “The EU wants to lay down a focus for the next 10 years of energy policy in the winter and Germany’s decision fits in exactly at the right time.”

The compromise between Chancellor Angela Merkel, utilities and many other stakeholders was “fair,” he said. [ID:nLDE6840EZ]

“I am also pleased that additional funds for renewables will be brought in as part of the provisions,” he said.

Burdens from the deal for utilities in the shape of a fuel tax and funds that they have to provide to the promotion of renewable energies, would probably be shouldered.

“I am certain everyone’s done their sums and it was correctly measured,” he said.

Oettinger also said that he was convinced the plan would stand up to possible challenges in constitutional courts.

FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) – Germany’s coal imports look set to increase until at least the middle of the decade, despite carbon pollution concerns and anti-coal lobbying that has succeeded in stopping many new coal-fired projects.

Coal supplies 42 percent of German power, and as the economy accelerates, steelmakers and utilities are stepping up their use of imported coal.

Some new coal-fired power capacity is still starting up and needs firing over its long lifetime.

“Germany can only maintain its industrial activity in the recovery with competitively priced power,” and coal imports are easily available and do not involve taxpayer subsidies, said Wolfgang Ritschelm the managing director of hard coal importers lobby VdKI.

“For a number of years it looked as if there were no new coal-to-power plants possible, but the fact is that some 8,300 MW are under construction to replace old units,” he added.

The increase in imports to fuel this capacity will come in the form of hard coal, which is already mainly imported.

European Union law demands that subsidized German hard coal mines close by 2018 at the latest.

FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) – The future for European coal generation looks gloomy with the odds stacked against new coal plants but if Turkey is included in the European zone a very different picture emerges, analysts say.

The global coal market’s focus on booming Asian imports has distracted attention from European demand hotspots and Germany’s key role as a coal consumer but Europe will remain an important market for imported coal beyond 2015.

“Internal European coal demand will remain around 500 million tonnes and with coal production declining in countries such as Germany and the UK, we would expect imports to rise to make up for that,” said Paul Monnier, analyst with Paris-based Societe Generale.

Without Turkey and coal-power dependent eastern European countries such as Romania and Bulgaria, Europe’s coal use will fall by around 8 percent or 13 million tonnes to 140 million tonnes a year by 2015.

With Turkey’s additional planned 22 GW of new coal plants and some Eastern European new plants, consumption may rise by over 55 million tonnes a year in five years.

“The overall decrease should be compensated for by an increase in countries such as Turkey – for us included in the European zone and eastern Europe,” said Monnier.

“In Turkey the new imported coal power projects could amount to a capacity of nearly 22 GW during 2010-2012,” he added.

STOCKHOLM/FRANKFURT, Aug 26 (Reuters) – Swedish power group Vattenfall [VATN.UL] said on Thursday it had reached an agreement in a dispute with Germany over investment in the Moorburg coal-fired power plant in Hamburg.

Vattenfall said the two sides had agreed to end arbitration proceedings initiated by Vattenfall at the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) two years ago.

The announcement on Thursday did not clarify what the move means for the progress of the 1,645 megawatt coal-fired plant on the Elbe river, which local Green campaigners oppose, while Vattenfall continues with building work.

“We have withdrawn the international complaint but we are bound to confidentiality regarding any contents of agreements,” a Vattenfall spokesman said.

Progress has been delayed for two years due to local opposition to carbon dioxide emissions from coal burning, and fears over a threat to wildlife from cooling water emissions.

The 2 billion euros ($2.54 billion) plant was meant to start producing power in 2012.

Vattenfall Europe, the German arm of the Swedish utility, aimed to use the plant to replace old power and heat installations to supply the port city and surrounds.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2009 fell 1.3 percent to 31.3 billion tonnes in the first year-on-year decline in this decade, German renewable energy institute IWR said on Friday.

The Muenster-based institute, which advises German ministries, cited the global economic crisis and rising investments in renewable energies for the fall in emissions.

Global investment in renewable installations for power, heat and fuels last year rose to 125 billion euros ($161 billion) from 120 billion in 2008, IWR said.

But IWR director Norbert Allnoch said given the force of the crisis, the reductions in CO2 output could have been greater, had stronger output in Asian and Middle Eastern countries not overcompensated the savings obtained from declines in Europe, Russia, Japan and the U.S.

“The energy-induced CO2 output in China in 2009 due to its economic growth has grown to a level now that is as high as that of the U.S. and Russia combined,” he said.

China in 2009 was in top position with 7.43 billion tonnes after 6.81 billion in 2008, followed by the U.S. with 5.95 billion (6.37 billion 2008). Russia was in third position, just before India, and followed by Japan.

Global investments in solar and wind power were helped by lower equipment costs as the crisis led to price cuts, IWR said.

FRANKFURT, Aug 13 (Reuters) – Global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in 2009 fell 1.3 percent to 31.3 billion tonnes in the first year-on-year decline in this decade, German renewable energy institute IWR said on Friday.

For a related table on the data, which are based on IWR research and official information, click on [ID:nLDE67C0FK].

The Muenster-based institute, which advises German ministries, cited the global economic crisis and rising investments in renewable energies for the fall in emissions.

Global investment in renewable installations for power, heat and fuels last year rose to 125 billion euros ($161 billion) from 120 billion in 2008, IWR said.

But IWR director Norbert Allnoch said given the force of the crisis, the reductions in CO2 output could have been greater, had stronger output in Asian and Middle Eastern countries not overcompensated the savings obtained from declines in Europe, Russia, Japan and the U.S.

“The energy-induced CO2 output in China in 2009 due to its economic growth has grown to a level now that is as high as that of the U.S. and Russia combined,” he said.

China in 2009 was in top position with 7.43 billion tonnes after 6.81 billion in 2008, followed by the U.S. with 5.95 billion (6.37 billion 2008). Russia was in third position, just before India, and followed by Japan.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany is at the forefront of installing renewable energy but there is an Achilles heel to its strategy.

The wind does not always blow and the sun may not shine all day.

The share of renewables in power production is set to nearly double by 2020 to 30 percent of total output, but only small power volumes can currently be stored in oversupply periods.

New cutting edge, and probably costly, storage is needed to keep any extra green power ready for when the weather is unfavorable.

Utilities and partners such as RWE and Evonik are eyeing pilot projects such as compressed air, hydrogen and battery solutions in competition with companies in China, the United States and India.

The government’s energy agency Dena is committed to the environmental drive but knows about the technological challenges yet to be solved and the possibly rising bill to consumers.

“We need far more research into new storage systems as they are still too expensive,” said Dena director Stephan Kohler.

FRANKFURT, May 10 (Reuters) – Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-right coalition may have trouble pushing through planned nuclear lifetime extensions after a German regional election on Sunday went awry for the government. [ID:nLDE64801V] North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, left Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Free Democrat (FDP) allies short of their previous state majority, leaving the make-up of the next government unclear. Many voters who punished the Berlin government for agreeing to aid Greece and for a local party sponsorship scandal are also critical of Merkel’s plans to reverse a nuclear exit programme. Merkel, whose coalition has a majority in parliament’s Bundestag lower house, could now be blocked on many issues in the Bundesrat upper house, which represents the states. "The nuclear extension has become politically more difficult because the majority in the Bundesrat has been lost," said Theo Kitz, analyst at Merck Finck. Utility shares lagged a broad market rally. [ID:nLDE6490TZ] Utilities have hoped to be able to run the country’s 17 remaining reactors longer than the agreed 32 years. But they also have scenarios in place to close them as planned. This is not least because even the conservative Environment Minister Norbert Roettgen has signalled he favours renewables and he would be stingy on the extensions, both in length of years and in terms of splitting additional revenues between private and public-sector stakeholders. Utility RWE <RWEG.DE> on Sunday struck a deal with peer E.ON <EONGn.DE> to buy production quotas from an idled E.ON reactor, giving lifeblood to its ageing Biblis A nuclear plant which otherwise would have needed to close this year. [ID:nLDE6480J2] If the nuclear life extension plan can go ahead without needing approval by the Bundesrat, Merkel’s government could in theory ignore the North Rhine-Westphalia result and grant longer life cycles for the reactors. But a panel of legal experts advising the Bundestag said the upper house has to approve any agreement to extend the lifetime of nuclear plants. [ID:nWEA1292] Opponents to this view say the original nuclear exodus law did not need Bundesrat approval. It was a mistake that the cabinet failed to put in place clarification on this ahead of the regional election, which could have insulated it from fall-out, said another analyst. It will also be hemmed in by the individual state’s nuclear supervisory authorities, which might differ from its course. TWO SCENARIOS FOR NORTH RHINE-WESTPHALIA If there was a grand coalition of the Conservatives and Social Democrats (SPD), the SPD would stick to the nuclear exodus as it drew it up 10 years ago with its junior partners, the Greens Party and industry, as a prestige object. The conservatives might salvage extensions in other states. If the SPD form a coalition with the ultra-left party The Left — which wants to disempower utilities — and Greens, who want to move away from fossil fuels, it would have trouble maintaining coal- and nuclear-biased energies. This could anger its blue-collar electorate. For a Factbox on plants’ quotas please click on [ID:nLS3850] (Additional reporting by Tom Kaeckenhoff, Markus Wacket, Peter Dinkloh; Editing by Amanda Cooper)

FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) – Germany and Britain have arrested 25 people and are investigating others in connection with suspected tax evasion in carbon permit trading, their respective tax authorities said on Friday.

Britain’s HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) told Reuters it had arrested 8 people in Scotland and 13 more in the rest of the UK after a search of 81 businesses and residential premises.

Frankfurt prosecutors made three arrests in Germany and one under a European arrest warrant in Britain, where 50 more individuals were under investigation, said a spokesman for the Frankfurt prosecutors office, which has spearheaded the investigation.

The fraud occurs when companies buy carbon permits in one country without paying value-added tax (VAT) and sell them in another adding tax to the price but pocketing the difference for themselves.

“There have been raids and other measures in Britain, Denmark, Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Cyprus,” the spokesman said.

The German investigation was also looking into allegations of money laundering, he added.

Both Germany and the UK declined to name individuals under investigation. Deutsche Bank <DBKGn.DE> said seven of its employees were suspects in the German investigation.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Frankfurt prosecutors said on Friday they had arrested four people in Germany and Britain in connection with suspected tax evasion in carbon permit trading and 50 more people were being investigated.

He declined to name individuals, as is customary under German law. Deutsche Bank said seven of its employees were suspects in the investigation.

“Deutsche Bank believes the allegations raised against its employees can be rebutted,” a Deutsche Bank spokesman said.

Britain’s HM Revenue and Customs, which investigates tax fraud, said it could not comment.

Apart from tax evasion, the authorities were also looking into allegations of money laundering, the Frankfurt prosecutor’s office spokesman said.

“There have been raids and other measures in Britain, Denmark, Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Cyprus,” he said.

The probe in Germany, where total damage is estimated at 180 million euros ($239.7 million), follows investigations in Britain, France, Spain, Norway and the Netherlands into carbon credit fraud over the last year.