Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions have significantly decreased in the year 2024. According to preliminary numbers published by the think tank Agora Energiewende on Tuesday, they decreased by 18 million tons or three percent compared to the previous year, totaling 656 million tons of CO2 equivalent.
As a result, the emissions have fallen for the third consecutive year and have reached a historic low, even if the decrease compared to the previous year slowed down significantly. Germany has exceeded its annual climate protection target of the new Climate Protection Act by 36 million tons of CO2. However, the country has missed the European climate targets by an estimated 12 million tons of CO2 due to a lack of progress in the transport and building sectors.
Compared to the reference year of 1990, Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions have decreased by a total of 48 percent in 2024.
The main reason for the decrease, according to the study, was the positive effects in the energy sector, which accounted for more than 80 percent of the emissions reductions: In 2024, power plants with a total capacity of 6.1 gigawatts were shut down, which accounted for 16 percent of the installed coal capacity. The loss was offset by a record production of renewable energies, accounting for 55 percent of the total electricity consumption, and increased imports, of which 49 percent came from renewable sources.
Despite a stable electricity demand, the stock market price of electricity decreased by an average of 18 percent or 17 euros per megawatt hour to 78 euros per megawatt hour compared to 2023. Other reasons for the emissions decrease, according to the think tank, were mild weather conditions and a weaker economic performance.