The German hard‑coal sector claims it can help lower energy prices amid the current Iran conflict.
Axel Bethe, Chairman of the Association of Coal Importers, told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” that Germany can make almost seven gigawatts of reserve power available for electricity generation. This amount corresponds to roughly ten percent of the country’s peak demand. “It would significantly reduce prices and save a lot of gas, which we urgently need for heating, industry, and to refill storage” Bethe explained.
Plant operators are also urging the use of reserve capacities to ease the pressure on the market. Andreas Reichel, Chairman of the Essen‑based energy conglomerate Steag, told the newspaper that generators are “in the starting positions” to deploy reserve plants for a limited time. He cited the coalition agreement between the Union and SPD, which requires that reserve plants be used “not only to avoid supply shortages but also to stabilize electricity prices”.
The Federal Ministry of Economics confirmed the commission’s review of the coalition directive. At the same time, ministry officials warned that a market deployment of reserve plants is complex and expensive, and that risks to grid stability and legal challenges-particularly under EU state‑aid rules-must be considered.
In the so‑called capacity reserve, only gas plants are listed. Deploying them would not relieve storage pressures or lower prices. The network reserve is likewise limited because coal plants are already bound by redispatch requirements for grid stability. A further market deployment could threaten system operation. Many plants are old, inefficient, and their production costs are high.
Bethe disputed this assessment. He said even older hard‑coal units can generate electricity at less than €120 per megawatt hour, whereas open‑cycle gas turbines run at about €170 per megawatt hour. He added that the climate balance of coal is not worse than that of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Reichel confirmed that there is “no either‑or between system stability and price dampening”; the plants can supply both. He argued that dispatching reserve capacity is both possible and economically required, “it would immediately lower electricity prices and gas consumption, creating a win‑win for industry and consumers alike”.