The panel, consisting of politicians, climate experts, unions and industry figures from coal regions, reached this decision on Saturday morning after a final marathon 24-hour session, several members told AFP. Under the plan, several plants that use lignite or brown coal, which is more polluting than black coal, will be closed by 2022. Other plants will follow until 2030, when only 17 gigawatts of Germany's electricity will be supplied by coal, compared to today's 45 gigawatts. Coal accounted for more than 30 percent of Germany's energy mix in 2018, putting it neck-and-neck with renewables like solar and wind energy. But in mining states, 61 percent want Germany to hold on to the fossil fuel for longer.

Source: The Local January 26, 2019 11:37 UTC