Germany became the first major economy to abandon coal and nuclear power

German authorities announced the agreement on a phased plan to phase out coal and nuclear energy.

Bills approved by both housesparliament, provide for the closure of the last coal power plant by 2038 and subsidies of $45 billion that will help regions that have lost profits.

This plan is part of the energytransition of the country to "green" energy. If this plan works, then it will be one of the largest economies that will give up harmful emissions. Unlike other countries, such as France and the UK, for Germany this goal is hindered by the existing commitment to curtail nuclear power by the end of 2022.

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Germany shuts down its last mining mineblack coal in 2018, but continues to import fuel and extract its own reserves of brown coal. Officials warn that losing jobs in the mining industry could harm economically vulnerable regions.

“The days of coal in Germany are numbered,” saidGerman Minister of Environment and Nuclear Safety Svenja Schulze. “Germany is the first industrialized country to leave behind both nuclear power and coal.”

Greenpeace activists believe thisthe initiative is not radical enough. They believe that the new laws will not allow to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to achieve the results of the Paris Agreement.

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