The current energy crisis is a wake-up call and shows that the comprehensive acceleration of climate innovation is more important than ever for ensuring the security of energy supply, sustainable growth, affordable energy prices and achieving the target of climate neutrality.
To meet this challenge, we need to develop and accelerate the appropriate concepts. Within the framework of the Policy Accelerator for Climate Innovation, a joint project of EPICO and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, fourteen hand-picked experts have worked in teams to develop innovative solution proposals on three key topics for advancing innovation in the field of climate policy and for creating the necessary framework conditions for this:
- A new electricity market framework to increase flexibility by strengthening local price signals, reducing complexity at the distribution grid level, and financing controllable power (Read the workshop report Energy-Market Design).
- An import strategy in the international competition for hydrogen by providing “import guarantees” for hydrogen producers (Read the workshop report H2 Import Strategy)
- Designing a transformation fund for climate neutrality envisaged in the coalition agreement of the German Federal Government to leverage private capital to close investment gaps, especially for medium-sized innovation projects (Read the workshop report Transformation Fund).
The innovation process, which lasted several weeks, was supported by high-ranking “challengers”, i.e. key players from politics, business, science and civil society, such as Dr. Markus Pieper MEP, Parliamentary Business Manager of the CDU/CSU Group in the European Parliament, Dr. Ingrid Nestle MP, Spokesperson for Climate Protection and Energy, Bündnis 90/Die Grünen parliamentary group, Dr. Sopna Sury, COO Hydrogen, RWE Generation SE, Dr. Stefan Kaufmann, Hydrogen Officer, Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Dr. Philipp Steinberg, Head of the Economics Department, Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection, and Prof. Dr. Andreas Löschel, Chair of Environmental/Resource Economics and Sustainability at Ruhr University Bochum, and Chairperson of the Expert Commission on the Federal Government's "Energy of the Future" monitoring process.
The preliminary results were presented and discussed in a “start-up pitch format” on June 24, 2022, at Helix Hub in Berlin with an expert jury consisting of politicians, business leaders and media representatives:
- Andreas Jung MdB, Deputy Federal Chairperson of the CDU, Spokesperson for Climate Protection and Energy of the CDU/CSU Parliamentary Group in the German Bundestag
- Dieter Janecek MdB, Spokesperson for Economic Policy Committee, Bündnis90/Die Grünen Parliamentary Group in the German Bundestag
- Reinhard Houben MdB, Spokesperson for Economic Policy, FDP Parliamentary Group
- Dr. Philipp Steinberg, Head of the Economic Policy Department, Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy
- Sabina Wölkner, Head of Department 2030 Agenda, Konrad Adenauer Foundation
- Barbara Maria Lempp, Managing Director, Association of German Energy Traders
- Jakob Schlandt, Editorial Director, Tagesspiegel Background
- Klaus Stratmann, Chief Correspondent for Energy and Climate, Handelsblatt
- Thomas Wendel, Editorial Director, Tagesspiegel Background Sustainable Finance
The results
The teams engaged with the jury and the audience at Demo Day, and addressed their valuable feedback in their respective concept papers. The three concept papers developed by the teams are available for download here (in German):
You can view the key points of the three teams' proposed solutions presented and discussed at the Demo Day here (in German):
- Demo Day Pitch: Hydrogen Import Strategy
- Demo Day Pitch: Flexible Electricity Market
- Demo Day Pitch: Transformation Fund
Next steps
The innovation strategy process of the Policy Accelerator for Climate Innovation will continue after the summer break. The results and proposals from the Policy Accelerator will be further developed in the form of studies and events in Berlin and Brussels.
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