Faced with rising energy prices triggered by the US and Israeli war on Iran, a majority of Germans want the country to accelerate a path that makes it less dependent on energy imports and supports the expansion of renewables as a crucial measure, several surveys from the energy industry have shown. Almost 80 percent of respondents in a survey commissioned by energy supplier E.ON said that Germany should seek to become less dependent on energy imports faster. Sixty percent agreed that the Iran war increased the urgency to speed up the energy transition. About 40 percent said that they have started saving transport fuels or electricity due to the war. Only a small share of owners of a combustion engine car or gas or oil heating system said that their general willingness to purchase an EV (21.9%) or heat pump (28.5%) has increased since the start of the conflict.
A logical question is what fraction of Germany’s energy is renewables? And how long will it take to get to 100%? Aren’t they major buyers of electricity from nuclear plants in France?
Investment in green energy capacity means increased cost for depreciation. It can be much faster if govt foots the bill. Otherwise prices increase and voters tend to object. Green energy is a long term goal. Costly to do fast.
Oil, coal and natural gas made up 78% of their energy consumption in 2024.
https://www.iea.org/countries/germany/energy-mix
DB2
78% is not for electrical generation - 78% is for total energy consumption.
Is Germany only trying to become energy independent for electricity and not for other types of energy consumption?
No Germany and many countries in the world are trying cut down imports of energy. Some countries have lots of coal, oil or gas. Germany has been a big user of their coal in the past for energy independence. However, oil is needed by the transportation sector and many EU countries need to import oil or switch to electrification of transportation. China, USA, India, Japan, South Korea, France has the same problem with needing crude oil for transportation. Below are the 15 countries that imported the highest dollar value worth of crude oil during 2024.
- mainland China: US$324.6 billion (24.6% of imported crude oil)
- United States: $174.4 billion (13.2%)
- India: $143.3 billion (10.8%)
- South Korea: $85.4 billion (6.5%)
- Japan: $71.9 billion (5.4%)
- Netherlands: $49 billion (3.7%)
- Germany: $48.4 billion (3.7%)
- Spain: $36.6 billion (2.8%)
- Thailand: $33.8 billion (2.6%)
- United Kingdom: $31 billion (2.3%)
- France: $29.8 billion (2.3%)
- Italy: $29.1 billion (2.2%)
- Singapore: $27.3 billion (2.1%)
- Belgium: $24.1 billion (1.8%)
- Taiwan: $23.9 billion (1.8%)
Crude Oil Imports by Country 2024
Quite true. And pauleckler asked “A logical question is what fraction of Germany’s energy is renewables?”
DB2
Why Investing in Wind and Solar to Avoid Gas Shocks Hasn’t Added Up for Some
Renewable energy is cheaper to run than fossil fuels, especially with war choking oil supply. But it hasn’t turned out that way for some European countries, and the reason is complex.
The war in Iran has sent fuel prices soaring in Europe, which is now confronting its second energy crisis in less than five years. But even as some countries have installed record levels of wind and solar power as a way of insulating themselves against energy shocks, the results have been uneven.Germany, for example, has created more wind and solar capacity than Spain, but that has not stopped Germany’s wholesale electricity prices from jumping sharply at times, while Spain’s have been relatively stable.
So what explains these differences?
One big factor is the structure of Europe’s energy markets. Because of the way Europe sets wholesale electricity prices, even a small amount of fossil fuel in a country’s energy mix can have an outsize effect, anchoring prices higher and canceling out potential savings from renewables.
How Europe’s energy pricing works
Europe’s energy markets work like a cup that needs to be filled every hour. The cup represents all of a country’s energy demand. First, the cheapest form of energy is poured into the cup, then the next most expensive, and so forth. That generally means solar and wind are added to the mix first, then hydroelectric and nuclear power, then gas and coal.
But here’s the catch: European countries’ wholesale electricity prices are determined by the last, most expensive form of fuel that’s added to the mix. In practice, that means using a relatively small amount of fossil fuel energy, like gas, can raise a country’s wholesale electricity prices, regardless of how much cheaper renewables it uses.
The article explains it but it’s fairly involved, not simple to describe in a message board post. But if you have access, have at it.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/10/climate/europe-energy-crisis-iran-war.html