Comments on: Great German Success

By: Kate

Kate — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:42:00 +0000

If we go off the grid with solar power that cost would not effect the German Government to pay out the high cost of feed-in tariffs, its better to say ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your self.
You will never save the planet if you think that governments are going to continue to pay for solar power.

By: Ronald Brakels

Ronald Brakels — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 00:29:00 +0000

I don’t know, but it’s couldn’t be much as we know a lot of the emission reductions come from things like reducing the amount of heating oil Germany uses, which is not something China is really involved in.

By: Özgün Özışıkyılmaz

Özgün Özışıkyılmaz — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 19:08:00 +0000

How much of this reduction has to do with German companies delegating their production to China, thus emitting Chinese CO2 to produce goods consumed outside of China?

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 10:15:00 +0000

Yes, great point that we need to start making more.

By: Ronald Brakels

Ronald Brakels — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 21:50:00 +0000

The German Environment Minister, Herr Altmaier, counted feed-in tariffs as a cost when they are actually a transfer, so building up Germany’s solar capacity has not cost as much as he says. As an example of the difference between a cost and a transfer, if Grandma gives 100 euros to her son that transfer doesn’t decrease the wealth or spending power of the familiy as a whole. Grandma might be poorer, but the family as a whole isn’t, just as transfers from feed-in tarifs don’t make Germany as a whole poorer (or not much poorer – there will be some small deadweight losses.) If the son then spends that 100 euros to buy a TV then that is a cost, the 100 euros is gone and the family’s overall spending power is reduced. Of course, they do get a TV out of it.