Made in Germany
Studio Guest – Claudia Kemfert on France's EU Presidency
DW-TV: Claudia Kemfert: Inflation in the eurozone reached 4 percent in June... that's partly down to the extremely high price of oil. Has Sarkozy indicated what he intends to do to combat this problem?
Claudia Kemfert: He intends to cut down the value-added tax, which is the wrong signal because we need to get away from fossil fuel, we need alternative mobility concepts and renewable energy in the market. So we need policies that tackle this issue but the value added tax cut cannot do it, in fact it can also increase the price because the energy companies can increase the price again.
Bildunterschrift: Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: DW-TV: Talking about alternative and renewable energy, Germany is a frontrunner: we have a graphic: here in Germany, 8 point 5 percent of energy needs are covered by alternate power... and that figure is headed up. Some forecasts show alternative energy sources accounting for 35 percent of the power in Germany by 2030. How far do you think other G8 countries will go, will they be able to match that?
CK: No, not with the same share that German is after, especially because we already have special policies to increase the share of renewable energies in the market. Other countries do not, so Germany will remain the frontrunner but we do need other countries to follow and also to increase their share of renewable energies drastically.
DW-TV: The heads of the leading industrial economies are heading for the G8 summit in Japan in a few days... nuclear power is going to be a topic again... do you think there is a viable alternative to nuclear power on the horizon?
CK: Nuclear is only one option. If we see it on a global scale, nuclear power is not that large an energy source, but it will have an impact on energy contribution in the next fifty years but we need alternatives after this. Then we need to go for renewable energy, energy saving, but I agree that within that time we will see some power plants constructed on a world scale but not to that extent.
Interview: Heather DeLisle
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