Volt on climate and energy

Volt wants Germany to be climate neutral by 2040 at the latest, as its contribution to the Paris Agreement. Climate protection, competitiveness, and social fairness are to be pursued together. The goal is a circular economy that stays within planetary boundaries.

Germany should be climate neutral by 2040. That means the country no longer harms the climate. Emissions should drop sharply in the coming years. The economy should still stay strong and fair.

Emissions are to fall sharply over the coming years. To get there, the platform names a comprehensive climate policy, a socially acceptable transformation of the economy, and targeted support for climate-neutral growth and innovation. Entrepreneurs and mid-sized companies are to be strengthened, since Volt sees them as drivers of competitiveness. Where the economy fails to meet people's basic needs, the state is to step in.

Volt wants to lower energy prices because, in the platform's view, they help determine competitiveness, especially for industry. To that end, the energy tax would be cut and the federal government would cover part of the grid fees.

Volt wants energy to cost less. The tax on energy should be as low as possible. Later it should end in the whole EU. The government should pay part of the cost of the power grids.

The energy tax would fall to the lowest rate EU law permits and, in the long run, be abolished across Europe. The platform calls grid expansion a task for generations that cannot be paid for by users alone. For that reason, part of the grid fees now financed through a surcharge would come from the federal budget. Affordable energy prices are meant to go alongside the energy transition.

Volt wants to factor ecological and social costs into economic decisions through market-based instruments. The second European emissions trading system would start on schedule, and the sales tax would depend on sustainability. Part of the revenue from carbon pricing would flow back to the population.

Volt wants harm to the climate and the environment to have a price. Trading in CO₂ permits in Europe should grow in 2027. The sales tax should depend on how sustainable a product is. At least one third of the CO₂ money should go straight to the people.

The ETS-2 emissions trading system would be expanded at the start of 2027 as planned. The sales tax on goods and services would depend on key sustainability criteria. At least 33% of revenue from CO₂ taxes and emissions trading would go to the population as direct payments. The platform justifies this with an economy that stays within planetary boundaries and is socially fair.

Volt wants to allow fossil fuels in industrial plants only until 2035 and to require climate-neutral energy for new plants. The platform justifies this with climate targets, securing Germany as a business location, and reducing dependence on fossil resources.

From 2035, factories should stop using oil, gas and coal. New plants must run on electricity or hydrogen. Volt wants to fund new production methods. Some emissions cannot be avoided. Volt wants to capture and store these.

New industrial plants would have to use energy sources such as electricity or hydrogen. Funding would go to processes that avoid process-related greenhouse gases and to chemical processes that use CO₂ as a raw material (CCU). For unavoidable emissions, such as in cement production, Volt wants to use carbon capture and storage (CCS). The party also expects this to create sustainable jobs.

Volt wants political decisions to undergo mandatory checks of their climate impact and wants climate action to be binding at every level of government. More transparency about emissions and products is meant to enable informed purchasing decisions and build acceptance.

Politicians should check every decision for its effect on the climate. Federal, state and local governments should have to protect the climate. An online overview should show emissions every year. Shoppers should get clear information about products.

The plan includes a dashboard, updated every year, that discloses emissions from imports and exports. Consumers would receive easily accessible and reliable product information. Ministries would cooperate more closely across departments on climate action. Volt links the binding anchoring at all levels with sustainable public procurement and careful use of resources. Progress and difficulties would be reported openly.

Volt wants all electricity demand in 2035 to be met continuously from renewable energy. To get there, grids would be expanded faster, storage made more economically attractive, and solar installations on buildings made mandatory nationwide.

From 2035, all electricity should come from wind, sun and other renewable sources. Volt wants to expand power grids faster. Power storage should pay off more. New buildings should have to get solar panels. This also applies to major renovations.

For grid expansion, the platform calls for a reliable legal framework and simpler planning and permitting. The smart meter rollout would be regulated in a less complicated way and focused more on benefits for the grid, which is meant to make digitalization faster and cheaper. Rules for energy storage would closely follow EU law, and barriers to flexibly used battery storage would be removed. The uniform solar requirement would apply to residential and other buildings for new construction and energy retrofits. Renewable energy installations would continue to be supported through contracts for difference.

Volt wants to cut the electricity tax to the minimum permitted in the EU and restructure grid fees so that energy stays affordable. The platform argues that the costs of the energy transition are unevenly distributed and often fall on those who cannot have solar panels or a heat pump.

Volt wants to cut the tax on electricity sharply. Fees for the power grid should also stay low. The energy transition costs a lot of money. Volt says the costs are not shared fairly. People should be able to take part in energy projects.

In the long run, the party wants the energy tax to be abolished across the EU. Grid fees would be based on who causes the costs. Expansion of energy infrastructure would no longer be paid for through these fees alone, so that they stay low over time. Volt also wants to support energy cooperatives and other participation models to increase acceptance of the energy transition.

Volt wants to set out in law a path for turning gas distribution grids into hydrogen grids and to secure the long-term supply of green hydrogen. The party says this matters most for industries that cannot be fully electrified.

Green hydrogen is a gas made with green electricity. Some factories cannot run on electricity alone. They need this hydrogen. Volt wants to convert gas grids for hydrogen step by step. Germany and Europe should work together to secure enough hydrogen.

A legal framework with clear targets would govern the transition of the distribution grids. A strategy coordinated between Germany and the European level is meant to provide enough green hydrogen over the long term. Volt expects this to deliver planning certainty, faster expansion, and better conditions for investors.

Volt wants to shift heating to renewable sources by simplifying permits for geothermal energy and large heat pumps and by expanding district heating and the use of waste heat. Heating systems labeled "H2-ready" would no longer be subsidized, because the party considers running them on green hydrogen unrealistic.

Volt wants heating to work without oil and gas. Geothermal energy and large heat pumps should get permits faster. District heating should be expanded. Heat from factories and data centers should also be used. Heaters built for hydrogen should get no more subsidies.

Cheap electricity is meant to make renewable heat the first choice. For municipal heat planning, the platform calls for long-term funding, obligations to tolerate construction, and subsidy programs; district cooling would get the same privileges as district heating. Volt wants to strengthen geothermal energy with acceleration zones, exploration programs, and funding. New legal rules would systematically feed waste heat from data centers, industrial plants, and waste incineration into heating networks and make connecting to local and district heating easier.

Volt wants to write adaptation to the effects of the climate crisis into the Basic Law as a joint task of the federal and state governments and finance it through a long-term fund. This is meant to better prepare cities and rural regions for extreme weather events.

The climate is changing. There is more heat and more heavy rain. Volt wants to prepare cities and villages for this. This should be written into the Basic Law, Germany's constitution, as a task. A fund should pay for it for at least 30 years. A fund is a pot of money for one purpose.

Anchoring adaptation as a joint task is meant to create a reliable legal and financial framework. A climate adaptation fund fed from the federal budget would provide planning certainty for large infrastructure projects for at least 30 years and take social aspects and environmental justice into account. Nature-based solutions are planned, such as green buildings, unsealed surfaces, and areas for water to seep away or be retained. The sponge city would serve as the guiding concept for urban areas. Especially vulnerable groups would be involved early in decisions.

Volt wants to prepare Germany better for the effects of the climate crisis. This includes more flood protection, a health system geared to heat and infection risks, and resilient mixed forests.

Volt wants to prepare Germany for the effects of the climate crisis. There should be more protection against floods. The health system should cope better with heat. Forests should have many kinds of trees.

Flood defenses are to be expanded and riverbanks restored to a more natural state. A national strategy is to include heat action plans and prevention against infection risks, with a focus on vulnerable groups. Climate-resilient mixed forests and species-rich deciduous forests are to be promoted. Local residents, experts and associations are to be involved early, and strategies are to be reviewed regularly. In regulation, Volt wants to change living conditions rather than rely on individual behavior.

Volt wants to promote technologies for capturing, using and storing CO₂ and put them on a clear legal footing. In the party's view they are needed for climate-neutral manufacturing and secure jobs and competitiveness.

Volt wants to support technology that captures CO₂. CO₂ is a climate gas. It can be reused or stored in the ground. Volt prefers reusing it over storing it. Energy companies should take part of their CO₂ back out of the air.

Research and infrastructure for CCS and CCU are to be funded, and clear legal rules for their use created. Direct reuse of the gas (CCU) is to take priority over underground storage (CCS). Start-ups that remove CO₂ from the atmosphere are to receive support. Energy companies would have to remove a steadily growing share of their emissions from the air. Approaches such as artificial photosynthesis are also to receive targeted funding.

Volt wants to launch a nationwide program for energy retrofits of public buildings. The state is to become a role model for private owners. According to the platform, climate-neutral building and renovation lowers energy costs and helps meet climate targets.

Volt wants to renovate public buildings, such as offices and schools. The buildings would then need less energy. The state should set an example. There would be funding for climate-neutral building.

Public institutions would set higher benchmarks for energy efficiency. Where new construction is needed, Volt favors serial modular building with materials such as wood, clay and recycled materials. Funding would be available for climate-neutral measures in both new construction and renovation.