By Gunnar Schupelius
The heat transition is just as poorly thought out as the energy transition. Firstly, it doesn’t work and secondly, it makes our lives unaffordable, says Gunnar Schupelius.
We are learning from the current crisis that it is not wise to rely on one energy source alone. The dependence on natural gas is so great because people wanted to get out of coal and nuclear power. This type of energy transition has failed before everyone’s eyes and is taking us to the abyss.
Exactly the same mistakes are repeated in the case of the heat transition. In order to reduce CO₂ emissions, the installation of oil heaters is prohibited from January 1, 2026 (§ 72 (4) Building Energy Act. This is a kind of oil phase-out.
The traffic light coalition had even planned to ban gas heating. But then the role came backwards: the federal government collected the ban again in early September. But it should remain the end of oil heating.
What would that mean? Currently, 25 percent of all heating systems in Germany run on oil. If all new buildings were only heated with gas, demand would increase and prices would continue to rise. Dependence on gas imports would continue to increase.
The heat transition is just as poorly thought out as the energy transition. In other words, it just doesn’t work. The idea was to convert the entire heating technology to heat pumps, which push water through pipes deep into the earth, where it is heated and then sucked back up as heating water.
The pumps consume a lot of electricity, which is to be generated with wind turbines and solar systems. For example, heating systems without combustion processes that do not produce CO₂, which is considered harmful to the climate, are to be made mandatory.
But the beautiful dream is over, because the so-called green electricity from wind turbines and solar systems is by no means sufficient to supply all the heat pumps. You would need nuclear power plants to remain “climate neutral”. And as you know, they should be turned off.
The green power is also weather dependent. In winter, of all things, when the heating is needed, little solar energy is available. Wind power, on the other hand, does not come every day either. In short: If you switch to heat pumps with green electricity, you can only heat when there is a storm, and the apartment stays cold when there is a calm.
It is perhaps the only positive effect of this crisis that the “energy transition” and also the “heating transition” are exposed for what they are, namely shams, false promises that simply cannot be kept.
Mankind has been warming itself by fire for thousands of years. Is it supposed to be different now? One can wish for that, but that’s why it’s far from technically possible.
These wishful thinking, called “energy transition” and “heating transition”, are so dangerous because they keep driving prices up. They make our lives priceless.
Is Gunnar Schupelius right? Call: 030/2591 73153 or email: [email protected]