New German chancellor expected to be elected
Olaf Scholz will be elected Germany’s new chancellor today in the Bundestag.
The center-left politician from the Social Democratic Party is preparing to assume office after Angela Merkel’s departure. Scholz’ party has recently formed a coalition government with the Free Democratic Party and the Greens.
The coalition government’s primary objective will be adopting a more proactive stance on climate change. Berlin lags behind most European countries in overall share of energy from renewable resources. Therefore, expect it to mobilize to meet climate change goals at an earlier-than-expected time by reducing its reliance on non-renewable energy consumption, including petroleum and coal.
As a result, there will likely be an increase in the country’s per capita electric car production. The government will also sponsor additional investments on prospective public transportation projects. Although Berlin aims to reach the target of supplying approximately 80% of the nation’s overall electricity consumption from renewables in the long-term, it is highly unlikely for it to meet its objective despite the hefty investments. While Germany could slightly lower its dependence on overall oil consumption, it is unlikely for the demand on coal to decrease as it accounts for roughly 25% of Germany’s electricity source.
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