Germany’s transition to renewable energy has its roots in the environmentalist movements of the 1970s. Conservation was embraced by conservatives and liberals alike, and churches were an important part of the Energiewende.
To complement renewables, we will need power plants that can change how much energy they produce relatively quickly. To pay for such reserve generating capacity, the power market will need to be redesigned.
Energy utilities are responsible for the generation and distribution of energy. In Germany, due to the energy transition, these companies have been undergoing huge changes.
Germany rejects nuclear power because of the risks, the costs and the unsolved waste issue. In addition, nuclear power does not have the potential to play a major role in future world energy supply.
The German nuclear phaseout (in German: Atomausstieg) is the discontinuation of using nuclear power for energy; Germany will shut down its last nuclear power plant in 2022.