The federal government wants to increase the CO2 price for refueling and heating with fossil fuels in the coming year more than previously planned. The price should rise to 40 euros per ton on January 1st, as the German Press Agency learned from government circles on Wednesday. So far, 35 euros were planned. It is currently 30 euros. The “Handelsblatt” had previously reported. In the federal government, an increase in the CO2 price in 2024 to 45 euros was initially debated.
The federal cabinet approved the draft of the economic plan for the climate and transformation fund for 2024 and the financial plan up to 2027, as announced by the Ministry of Finance. This special fund is fed, among other things, from national CO2 pricing in the transport and heating sectors. According to the draft, the revenue from this should increase by around 2.3 billion to around 10.9 billion euros.
Finance Minister Christian Lindner said according to the announcement: “We have to proceed with a sense of proportion when pricing CO2, especially in view of the current weakness in growth.”
The coalition had postponed an increase in the CO2 price from the beginning of 2023 due to the energy crisis. The federal government is investing in climate-friendly conversion through the climate and transformation fund, a special fund of the federal government – for example, billions are going into energy-efficient building renovation, the decarbonization of industry and the expansion of electromobility. Program spending of around 57.6 billion euros is planned for 2024. That is 21.6 billion euros more than the target expenditure for 2023.
“With the KTF economic plan, we are promoting innovations in Germany as a business location,” said Lindner. “We are laying the foundations so that future opportunities can arise from decarbonization and digitization.”
