Germany pledges to phase out fossil fuels for first time with target of 2045

Germany has pledged for the first time to phase out fossil fuels by 2045, laying out a roadmap that shifts the goal from mere carbon neutrality to an explicit end to oil, gas and coal. The plan aims to boost renewable electricity from 55% to 80% by 2030, add 12GW of onshore wind and reach 215GW of solar capacity by 2030, reaffirm a coal exit by 2038 with scope to accelerate to 2035, and cut methane emissions by 30% by 2030 under the global methane pledge. The strategy also promotes electrifying heat and transport, including rolling out heat pumps - which now account for about half of new domestic heating systems - to replace gas boilers.

The announcement drew mixed reactions: campaigners hailed the shift but warned Germany’s economics ministry is still pushing for more gas, risking delays and continued fossil dependence. Former German climate envoy Jennifer Morgan called for faster, more deliberate electrification to secure energy independence and protect consumers, while the far-right Alternative für Deutschland successfully forced a watering down of a 2023 heating law that had aimed to ban most new oil and gas heating. Germany is the third major developed economy, after France and the Netherlands, to publish a fossil-fuel phaseout roadmap, following international commitments made at a Colombia conference and amid renewed climate debate at the UN general assembly.