Technology and Science23 September, 20263 min read
Germany Unveils 2045 Fossil Fuel Phase-Out Roadmap At UN General Assembly
Germany commits to phasing out fossil fuels by 2045; roadmap released at UNGA. Blueprint focuses on electrifying transport, heating, and industry, with renewables expansion.
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Germany sets 2045 exit
Germany unveiled a roadmap to end the use of fossil fuels by 2045, and the plan was presented on Wednesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. Environment Minister Carsten Schneider told the UN General Assembly that the war in the Middle East further demonstrated the need to abandon fossil fuels, saying, “If the situation in the Strait of Hormuz determines whether people can afford their daily commute to work, that is not a good state of affairs,”. Germany’s transition blueprint focuses on electrifying transport, home heating and industry, while gradually replacing fossil fuel power generation with renewables, and it says renewables supplied about 55% of Germany’s electricity last year.
Germany’s roadmap also sets a coal exit, with all coal-fired power stations that generated almost a quarter of Germany’s electricity in 2025 required to close by 2038 at the latest, while the government is exploring bringing the end date forward to 2035. German Economy and Energy Minister Katherina Reiche supports the construction of new gas-fired power plants to stabilise the electricity grid when wind and solar power generation fluctuates, and the roadmap says new gas-fired plants that receive state funding must be “hydrogen-ready” and run on climate-neutral fuels by 2045.
Targets, grids, and heat
Germany’s roadmap sets a renewables target of at least 80% by 2030, and it pairs the shift with electrification of transport and home heating through heat pumps backed by state subsidies. The blueprint also ties heating to “climate-neutral fuels,” requiring anyone who installs a new gas or oil heating system to use a rising share of “climate-neutral fuels” from 2029, reaching 60% by 2040, and it describes a proposed quota that would require fuel suppliers to switch entirely to climate-neutral heating fuels from 2045. The German Environment Ministry says fossil fuels still accounted for 65% of the country’s energy consumption in 2024, with 36% for petroleum products, 24% for natural gas, and 5% for coal, and it assesses the total cost of Germany’s imports of oil, gas, and coal at €76 billion in 2024.
Germany’s plan also calls for strengthening electricity grids, and it includes a push to install 2,000 more wind turbines and reduce the need for power plants by boosting the use of batteries. The roadmap’s critics in Germany challenged its ambition, with WWF saying it largely repeats existing initiatives without offering new ideas or greater ambition, and Deutsche Umwelthilfe accusing the government of “undermining” its own strategy by maintaining directions it considers favorable to fossil fuels.
Guterres urges timelines
UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged countries to develop credible roadmaps to abandon fossil fuels with clear timelines, and he warned that the world is temporarily pushing beyond the 1.5-degree warming limit and stressed the need for that excess to be “as small and as brief as possible.”
“‘Those who polluted the most – and profited the most – must do far more to repair the damage they caused. Polluters must pay.”
Guterres called on all countries to establish clear calendars to progressively phase out fossil fuels, declaring, “I ask all countries to develop a credible road map to abandon fossil fuels, with clear timelines,”.
Guterres also pressed for climate finance, urging mobilizing at least $300 billion annually for developing countries and raising climate finance to $1.3 trillion per year by 2035, while calling for tripling the funding allocated to climate adaptation by 2027.
The UN News account said three initiatives were announced to overcome practical obstacles, including the Global Power Grid Accelerator, which will begin by working in Africa and Southeast Asia, and it said renewable projects totaling more than 2,500 gigawatts are awaiting grid connections.
Campaigners linked the UN chief’s message to accountability, with 350.org quoting Guterres saying, “Those who polluted the most – and profited the most – must do far more to repair the damage they caused. Polluters must pay.”