Combat mission against hydrogen? Cronyism? What's going on in the German Ministry of Economy?

Combat mission against #hydrogen ? Cronyism? What's going on in the German Ministry of Economy?

Everyone knows how important the German market is for ramping up the European, even the global, hydrogen economy. Germany has sent a corresponding signal with H2 Global and is offering itself worldwide as a buyer of #green hydrogen in particular. Federal Minister and Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck left no doubt about that and he is extremely credible!

But what is going on behind his back? What is happening in his ministry under the direction of State Secretary Dr. Patrick Graichen, who has been in the headlines for the past weeks? He is accused by almost all parts of the German public of having built up a network of gentry, including his family, in the ministry. The leading article in " DER SPIEGEL " blatantly calls for the immediate dismissal of the state secretary, since his case not only pulls Minister Habeck down, but also risks the #energytransition .

In fact, the state secretary has built up a network of relationships in the ministry that one would never have expected from a Green minister with ambitions to becoming Germany’s chancellor. The eco-network includes close family members, a groomsman and a former boss.

POLITICO describes the situation as follows:?Germany's Economy Minister Robert Habeck faces growing pressure following accusations of cronyism that could force his ministry's top official in charge of the green energy transition to resign, undermine trust in his Greens party and torpedo his ambitions of securing the chancellorship.

The allegations center around Patrick Graichen, a top state secretary in charge of energy and climate issues in Habeck's ministry, whose?family connections within the ministry were first?reported?in late 2021. At the time, the ministry insisted safeguards would be put in place to avoid conflicts of interest.

The investigation come in parallel to a heated debate around Dr. Graichen’s beloved project regarding heat pumps. The vast majority of Germans, but also increasingly members of the federal government are against this central project of Dr Graichen. His plan foresees that from 2024, almost exclusively heat pumps are to be installed. "Der Spiegel" writes: "With Graichen's master plan for replacing the heating system, Habeck has reached a dead end politically."

What drives Dr. Graichen, the longtime head of the Agora Energiewende, a Berlin based think tank? It is probably his past as the boss of Agora, where he was working for many years on the electrification of all areas of life. However, according to "Der Spiegel", this also involves a combat mission against hydrogen solutions. A matter which is expressed in a new Agora study, which sees no future for more than 90% of the gas distribution networks and sees an "orderly and timely decommissioning" as a central task of the heat transition.

In this context, the Sunday edition of " Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung " quotes Professor Gerald Linke , head of the association for standard setting DVGW Deutscher Verein des Gas- und Wasserfaches : “The specifications for hydrogen heating systems are extremely restrictive in the draft law. It is clear from this that the Ministry of Economic Affairs does not want that at all". The article is based on a survey of German municipal utilities and distribution system operators, most of whom criticize politics in Berlin.

But what's Agora’s point? Where does this momentum come from? Why the restriction to certain technologies? Why the noticeable aggression against hydrogen?

Here, too, there are heated discussions and analyses in the German newspapers over the last days. ? BILD " and " DIE ZEIT “ published an analysis of the landscape behind Agora:

BILD summarises the flow of money towards Agora as follows:

?? But a second question (next to Graichen’s cronysm in the ministry) is being asked more and more loudly in Berlin's political scene: Who is actually behind Graichen & Co.? (…)?

???in particular: US investor Hal Harvey (62). He has almost endless resources and has thus created a green network from the USA in Germany as well.?

???Die Zeit: HE is even the "most powerful Green in the world“. (… His) money that also flows to Europe – especially to Germany. Millions-Harvey helps to found "Agora Energiewende", the "think tank", in which Habeck's State Secretary Graichen will later make a career. (…) would create a green lobby giant by 2020 at the latest. The Greens were still in the opposition, but are already working with the climate lobbyists on plans for the big German energy transition.?

???December 2021, the traffic light government (Red=Social Democrats, Yellow=Liberals, Green=Greens) took over, and the Greens would suddenly be at the helm of power. (…)?

???Berlin foundation manager Bernhard Lorentz had explained his concept to ?Die Zeit" like this: First create studies, then translate them into politics. And then: employees of the think tank should be "best placed in the ministry".

?? A dream came true: Robert Habeck (53, Greens). Federal Minister for Economics and Climate Protection (…) made the lobbyist Graichen State Secretary. Suddenly the plans from Graichen's briefcase affect the lives of 80 million Germans. Lobbying becomes realpolitik. Graichen becomes Mr. Heat pump. The boundaries between the energy transition lobby and politics have finally been dissolved. (…)

?? One question is therefore becoming more and more booming: How independent is Habeck's climate policy? How much influence does US financier Harvey have? (…)

?? How much money has flowed from Harvey's organizations in recent years? A spokeswoman confirmed grants from the European Climate Foundation (ECF) and Harvey's "Climate Imperative Foundation" among others between 2019 and 2022.

?? In 2022 alone, almost 1.6 million euros flowed from the European Climate Foundation via the company "Smart Energy for Europe Platform (SEFEP) gGmbH", sponsor of "Agora Energiewende", "Agora Industrie" and "Agora Agrar". Another 5.9 million euros came from Harvey's "Climate Imperative Foundation". Makes 7.5 million euros - 83 percent more than in the previous year.

The hydrogen sector needs to keep a close eye ?? on these developments. They impact massively the developments in Berlin but also in Brussels where Agora’s influential and long arm is visible big time.