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Showing posts from November, 2020

Green Transport: Private E-Car Infrastructure Subsidy in Germany

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900 Euros subsidy for private wallboxes to charge e-vehicles and a legal obligation to have e-charging points in all new buildings. Germany wants to push ahead with new infrastructure measures for e-mobility - but not everybody likes that. This blogpost introduces the latest measures to boost the e-infrastructure and further the energy transition in Germany`s all-important transport sector.

German Atomic Energy Act Amendment Illegal - Case Comment BVerfG 1 BvR 1550/19

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 The German Federal Constitutional Court decided yesterday that the way in which compensation under the Atomic Energy Amendment Act of 10 July 2018 has been organized infringes the German constitution. The court was particulary concerned about implications of the Act towards the right to property, protected under article 14 German constutution. Moreover, the court ruled that due to formal issues the amendment never entered into force. This blogpost discusses the facts of the case, provides background information and provides an outlook on implications of the judgement.

Biden`s Energy and Climate Plans - A Legal Appraisal

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President-elect Joe Biden pursued three main energy and climate missions during his campaign. First, he promised to re-join the Paris Agreement on `the first day in office´, second, he wants to embark on an ambitious phase-out programme for fossil fuels and third he promised to re-join the Iran Nuclear Deal. But is all of that possible from a legal point of view? This blogpost looks at the three cornerstones of his energy and climate strategy and assesses what the world can expect in the coming four years. 

Modernizing the Energy Charter Treaty - EU wants to stop investment protection for fossil fuels

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For almost two year now the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) is under revision and negotiations shall finish in 2021. The EU now ratched up its position on the reform of the ECT during recent negotiation rounds. The aim of the EU is to try to stop fossil fuel companies suing states over climate action. This shall, according to a leaked document, be pursuit by fundamental changes to the investment chapter and to the Investor State Dispute Settlement MEchanism of the ECT (ISDS). While earlier positions of the EU already pointed towards that direction, a new European Comission proposal for ECT reform now concretizes that coal, oil and gas investments shall be removed from the list of energy investments protected under the treaty. If approved, this change would come into force in ten years time.