On 18 November 2016 the Nuclear-Free Future Award (NFAA) was presented in Johannesburg, South Africa. As part of the symposium “Think Nuclear-Free!” Dr. Axel Berg, chair of EUROSOLAR Germany, presented the following speech analyzing chances and obstacles of the energy transition in Germany and the African continent.
The German Energiewende is rooted in the anti-nuclear movement of the 1970s and brings together both conservatives and conservationists — from environmentalists to the church. The shock of the oil crisis and the meltdowns in Chernobyl and Fukushima lead to the decision to close the last of 19 nuclear plants in 2022 and to the search for alternatives — and the invention of feed-in tariffs with full-cost compensation to cover the higher prices for renewables in those days.