Germany has a severe electricity shortage and cost problem, and it’s getting worse.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently made the admission that shutting down the German nuclear power reactors was a “severe strategic mistake.”
“To have acceptable market prices for energy production again, we would have to permanently subsidize energy prices from the federal budget,” Merz said, adding: “We can’t do this in the long run.”
“So, we are now undertaking the most expensive energy transition in the entire world,” Merz said with pronounced frustration. “I know of no other country that makes things so expensive and difficult as Germany.”
Keep in mind, Germany represents the largest contributing economy in the European Union. The German industrial sector is the backbone of the European economic model.
All of these realities paint a very tenuous picture for the economic future in Europe, when combined with a new trade relationship with the USA, increasingly cheap goods dumped into the EU by China and the EU promising to continue spending on the war effort in Ukraine against Russia.
Reality bites!
It’s amazing that it took them this long to realize their own stupidity. Can three nuclear power plants be rehabilitated? Probably easier said than done and extremely expensive. I don’t believe they have any other choice.
They would have to be rebuilt. Germany did controlled demolitions at their plants; the cooling towers for sure.
So they’re stupider than he looks?
It’s the haircut and glasses combo.
What’s just as amazing is that the German people have gone along with this nonsense. With advances in nuclear power generating technology it’d probably be cheaper and more efficient to do teardowns and rebuild from scratch!
Never mind the Germans- look what’s happening here thanks to the Green New Deal/SCAM.
Exactly! Unfortunately, the far left has neither the cognitive ability nor will, to do so.
We’re down to 54 plants (103 a decade ago) currently online.
They probably figured the American tax payer was gonna cover it.
Yup, but they figured wrong. . . I hope.
They are liberals, so, it’s understandable.
Thinking that the powers in charge knew from the get that it was a loser idea, just needed to sap $$$ from somewhere.
The windmills, and back up gas turbine peaking units are both built by Siemens as such it was a big winner for them and the economy, until it’s not.
That little underwater boom to the Russian pipeline just expedited the end results. Thanks FJB.
Well, there’s always coal. That’s a choice!
Germany kind of killed that choice too, AZ Patriot…
Reminder: March 26, 2025
(IndiaToday) Germany demolished the Moorburg coal plant, one of Europe’s most advanced, just six years after its launch, underscoring its shift to clean energy in pursuit of climate goals.
I believe the more a society drifts away from God, the further they drift from his wisdom. Most of Europe has drifted pretty far. The left in the US has been trying to drag us in the same Godless direction, but fortunately we’re not totally gone.
Very stupid decision years ago but technology has improved and new plants can be installed. They will be competing with big AI Data for capacity.
Leftists don’t “do” reality: they do propaganda and totalitarianism.
No truer words could be spoken!
Until, as Dame Thatcher famously said, they run out of other people’s money!
They ran out of OUR money. Very obvious at this point.
And crime, don’t forget the crime part! Seeing as they truly excel at that.
Europe – and especially Germany – have created a very difficult position for themselves.
Even a schmoe like me, could see that shutting down nuclear power plants, natural gas plants, etc – was beyond foolish – it was stupid – a stupidity bordering on suicidal.
You see these things happening, and you eventually realize that since these people never used reason to justify their actions… reason won’t help them reverse course.
Only the cold, stark reality of consequences will.
The saying, “you may not be interested in reality… but reality is interested in you” applies here.
It really is the March of the Morons.
(The Marching Morons, C.M. Kornbluth, 1951)
“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” ~ Einstein
Unfortunately it’s not the politicians that have to choose between heat and food this winter.
No, cuz the pols will use the power of the state to keep their lives going, and utilize the useful idiots to take ot from the rest of us.
Sounds to me like the people of Europe need to take back control of their politicians, knock the Obama bullshit out of them and cast them to the sewer. They just don’t have the earning power to live like a Socialist, conduct endless wars, vacation for 1 month a year and let in millions of unproductive Arabs and Africans into your welfare! George Soros has proven you to be idiots, so take your lumps, get down to working together and get yourself back to reality! The exact same thing could have been said about America, but we elected Trump. Things are better, but not over, so long as all the Somalian type corruption pockets remain for the Democrats to exploit in the elections!
Let’s throw the UniParty politicians and their supporters into that “corruption pocket” soup, also.
To see how close we came, remember FJB used “Climate Change!”and CO2 to shut down every coal, oil, and Natural Gas generating site he could, using EPA Operating Permit (non)renewals.
But he also, like Germany, also shut Nuclear fission sites, WHICH PRODUCE NO CO2!!
And then, to show the objective really wasn’t climate change, forbevery 100 MWatts shut down, only 25 MWatts of new renuable (solar and wind) was given a new permit, so the USA would be as energy hamstrung as the EU.
Soooooo , any Dimms out th here who can explain the “Green objective?
The objective is to bring us to our knees and then usher in hard core Chinese style communism.
Yes. That is the plan. The green thing was a ruse for gullible gaians.
Strangely enough, “Climate Change!” was the reason behind mass, uncontrolled immigration. As Dicky mentioned, the objective is to gain power permanently.
In 2015 Christiana Figueres, executive secretary of U.N.’s Framework Convention on Climate Change, admitted that the goal of environmental activists is not to save the world from ecological calamity but to destroy capitalism.
https://www.investors.com/politics/editorials/climate-change-scare-tool-to-destroy-capitalism/
I’m Not a libtard, but Turnip Soup forever from peasant gardens is the Ultimate Greenie Bolshevik Dream
As long as they can get Trofim Lysenko to provide gardening directions for them to religiously follow.
They respond like 8 year olds. Progs are just juvenile hedonists.
Does Germany use Smartmatic or Dominion? Or are most of the people as stupid as the “elected” politicians?
Well said.
They are 35 years down the road of experiencing the cold, hard reality of the consequences of reunification with their communist half.
Merkel for sure. AfD might argue where German stupidity lives.
Or the Confederacy of Dunces
Yes, I can see if all the actors were nefarious and what to see the destruction of their economies. But they’re not all nut bags. Nonetheless they are utterly incompetent and stupid, truly stupid leaders parading around like geniuses. Dangerous clowns.
They all thought that they were going to jump off of the cliff together. Remember Build Back Better as a slogan in all of Europe, the US, Canada, etc? It only works if everyone hobbles themselves at the same time. Then, there was Trump! WEF is swirling the toilet.
Hey, whats the problem, we still have windmills and solar panels when the sun shines, oh I forgot chemtrails block out the sun, damm.
Can we sell them ours?
Isn’t it the Coalition of the Willing? Willing to destroy their own countries and trying to take any others with them.
Yet they sit upon substantial coal reserves but don’t use them.
Meanwhile, France has 57 operating reactors which fulfill 70% of the country’s energy needs, and sells $3.5 billion of excess nuclear energy annually to other EU countries.
France is building six new reactors and considering another eight.
France may overtake Germany
He did this deliberately. He knew exactly what he was doing. He wanted the result.
He didn’t do it, it was done 2011-2013, post-Fukushima.
The terrorist Greens (that specific USA factions promoted post WWII) have always pushed this garbage.
🎯
Specifics matter; not generalizations. Your point is valid, however, it was specifically done 2011/2012, using Fukushima as the impetus.
The Greens were hatched in the 1960s. Their message was anti Nuclear power from the start.
Merkel, the Angel of Death for Germany.
Yes.
Funny thing is Fukushima was a lack of statistical probability for that size of a quake. Nate Silver discussed the statistics behind it in his book. They didn’t build it for that strong of a quake due to the high unlikely hood (based on one set of assumptions) of a quake that size hitting but Nate walked through how it really was in the realm based on statistics despite having no recording of a quake that sized.
Fukushima has nothing to do with unsafe nuclear power but rather just not predicting accurately the possibility of a quake that size hitting.
Chernobyl was an oops by an idiot, from my understanding — Homer Simpson was a the controls essentially and things went out of control quick (based on something I watched on it a while ago).
In a New Year’s Eve celebration in Germany over ten years ago, the same idiot leaders saw the results of their immigration policies: over 1,000 women sexually assaulted by Middle Eastern and North African men.
The same leaders making similar catastrophic decisions.
Short video, in English. (The 500 victims number is outdated.)
This was broadcast before the media was told never to report honestly on this subject. After they were silenced, thousands of native European women have been raped since. Tragic and demonic.
Ironically, it was women on the political left who were the primary driver in voting for all that’s happened.
And leftist female judges in England and Europe are giving slap on the wrist sentences to the rapists and telling the young victims they brought it on themselves and had it coming.
President Trump is going to address American electricity concerns
“Emergency Intervention”: Trump To Cap Residential Electric Bills By Forcing Tech Giants To Pay For Soaring Power Costsby Zero Hedge
January 16th, 2026 9:47 AM
Some are saying this is a trust busting move…..YAY!!
The very good and decent German volk truly need to LEAVE THE EU AND RETURN TO THEIR HISTORIC GERMANIC ROOTS.
Ethnic Germans have been programmed to hate themselves and their past. I am of German ancestry on my Father’s side and I really love Old Germany. Old Germany is mostly still alive in Southern Germany and what was the DDR but even in those place it’s under constant attack (mass migration, ethnic German self hate).
Life comes at you hard when you believe your own lofty, unrealistic platitudes.
In a just world he and his ilk would be strung with piano wire upside down outside gas stations.
Notice there haven’t been any train derailments or food factories being destroyed since Trump was elected.
Or hurricanes. Funny how that works!
perhaps if they sent back the resource sucking illegal foreign freeloaders to their country of origin, it would lighten the demand….
Humm.. maybe the muzzy hoard will back track to warmer climes .. however, why pass up a free host for parasitic endeavors especially when things are going so well for them..
Like invading Russia in the wintertime, letting der NippleFuhrer and Frau Nuland blow up your Pipeline was also a “severe strategic mistake”, Fritz.
Amen! Biden and Nuland should get credits in this movie!
The Weimar Republic is calling on line 1 Chancellor.
Pickup line 1 Sir.
The irony here is the EU is afraid Russia will invade. Not necessary. The incompetence of leadership will cause it to implode without a single shot being fired.
Perhaps in 10 years, Russia will be helping put together welfare shipments to various European countries!
Really Merz? You don’t say…as someone involved in nuclear since I was 18….karma’s a B!
The elite dufuses of Europe concluded long ago that they knew best about everything. And a conclusion is an intellectual dead end where you get tired of thinking. You get what you vote.
absolutely correct. Visiting European business division long longer time ago, convinced me they know everything better. The results will get worse and worse, before it can get better.
The Germans have a future now that looks like South Africa, unless they break free of the WEF
In the meantime,
https://www.zerohedge.com/technology/lis-technologies-launches-14-billion-laser-uranium-enrichment-project-tennessee
EU needs to Make Europe Great Again, kick out the illegals, and rebuild their energy base.
Roving gangs is not cool. Gangs who rape women are not cool. Funding the Ukraine war is not cool. Being weak and beholden to China is not cool. etc etc etc.
It is mind bogglingly crazy just how ignorant the leadership of both the EU and the US is when it comes to basic physics and energy. My Physicist father always said, show me an energy source (i.e. gasoline) that can fit in a little one gallon tin can and that gallon can drive the average car 70 mph for ~40 miles. That by every measure is an excellent energy storage source (gasoline). Hydrocarbons drive the world as we know it by every measure. The only other viable energy source to hydrocarbons are nuclear power plants. It’s basic physics. You remove your nuclear generation facilities and then massively curtail your hydrocarbon sources then effectively your pigeon holed into a doom loop. Idiots.
Why does everyone here think they are incompetent? These eu leaders are executing their plans perfectly. Let’s quit pretending they work or care fore their ppl
What’s going to be likely in the future is fission reactors powering fischer-tropsch processes to synthesize the particular hydrocarbons that are desirable.
Coal, natural gas, biomass, all can used as feedstock with some tweaking of the process.
Hydrocarbons are never going to go away contrary to the wishes of the green crowd. They are far too useful for fuel and chemical engineering into things like polymers, solvents, and thousands of other products that we use every day.
They are not all aligned. Insane France at least understands the merits of Nuclear Power. LOL!
Sundance. I think this post should also be added to your “Professional Idiots” category.
(Although, posting in “Big Stupid Goverment” category seems not much different.)
There’s always steam power and wood stoves!
Canada is banning wood stoves fireplaces!
can’t fix stupid
The Great age of DEI
If Justin Trudeau told you to invest in somethng, would you do it?
It wasn’t a mistake. They expected WW3 to break out whether in Europe or in the MidEast but eventually lead to much devastation and the “necessity” to form a world government so that there would be no more governments fighting. Not having nuclear power would mean less likely that Germany would have a nuclear wasteland to deal with in the aftermath.
They laughed at Trump because they “knew what was coming” and he didn’t.
Shutting down the German nuclear power reactors was a “severe strategic mistake.”
Well, duh!!
It goes to show what a bunch of ignorant close-minded leftards are running that country. They actually thought putting up a few windmills and declaring themselves “green” would solve all their energy problems. Where I come from such occupational gross negligence gets you fired!
Well, what’s fascinatating for me is the sheep horde and sheep stupidity. The voted. Now they have it.
I’m confused. All across Europe, you will hear the “Call to Pr*yer.” My question is if the * is an “a” or and “e”?
What a racket, imagine having to listen to this heretical screeching up and down your street.
He wouldn’t be screeching in my neck of the woods. He’d be screaming, “Save me!” and then the sound….of silence.
They still don’t understand what is invasion and what is pr*yer.
Perhaps they may want to also revisit their policy of flooding their country with anti-Christian, anti-Western Civilization, pro-welfare, pro-crime Muslims while they’re looking inward. Just a thought… just a thought.
that’s going on, don’t be afraid. The propaganda newspaper and Brussels politbyro censored everything.
No it’s not, it’s getting worse. Germany is fielding Muslim clerics into the German armed forces. A spokesperson for the German Ministry of Defense said the program was “logical” and would foster a “respectful and inclusive environment.”
https://rmx.news/article/german-armed-forces-to-introduce-first-muslim-chaplains-under-pilot-scheme/
A 31-year old Iraqi migrant who pushed a 16-year-old girl to her death in front of a freight train in northern Germany last August will have to do some counseling instead of going to prison. German prosecutors said the man was deemed not criminally responsible at the time of the alleged killing because of a diagnosis of schizophrenia. As a result, the prosecutor’s office said it did not bring charges aimed at imprisonment.
https://rmx.news/article/afds-weidel-calls-it-a-scandal-after-iraqi-migrant-who-shoved-16-year-old-liana-to-her-death-in-front-of-freight-train-avoids-prison/
The judge probably told the girl’s family she was mostly at fault because she didn’t have a male family member escorting her when in public.
That’s insane!
Europe is in the toilet!
It is down the pipes.
“I know of no other country that makes things so expensive and difficult as Germany.”
As though he and his globalist ilk/German Political Leadership had nothing to do with the political policies that led to Germany’s abandonment of nuclear power generation; what gall, the Tim Walz of the EU.
“I know of no other country that makes things so expensive and difficult as Germany.”
That makes things so expensive and difficult for German citizens. I’m sure Friedrich’s not feeling any pain.
Does misery like company?
There were a lot of people in the U.S. having a meltdown,
about the thought of a nuclear meltdown (and radiation) for decades
after March 1979.
Getting a new nuclear power plant permit ran into decades of u.s. govmt red tape etc.
Re: 3 mile island, nuclear reactor in Pennsylvania
One of the 2 reactors at 3 mile island in the USA, had a meltdown on March 28, 1979
https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/3mile-isle
U.S. development – and permitting – of nuclear power plants slowed down -for decades – after that event.
From 1979 through 1988, 67 planned nuclear power plant builds were canceled.
It’s been almost 50 years, and some in the USA are more open minded to Nuclear Power plants.
2017 article on nuclear energy:
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=30972
It is helpful to learn from the past,
to help to make for a better tomorrow.
Maybe Germany is learning too?
hmmm…
But, it still needs to done with genuine public safety as a part of the plans.
p.s.
The loads of corruption of U.S. taxpayers via frauds
does not help to make things (taxes, insurance, health, etc. ) less expensive.
imho
As a child of the 1950s/1960s I remember well having air raid drills at school and having to duck under my desk to protect myself in a nuclear war. Yeah, like that was going to do it.
I watched a documentary, probably fifteen years ago, where they were talking about ‘new and improved’ nuclear power plants that would be safe to run without the risk of meltdowns or explosions. At that time they showed many companies working on them, and they definitely sounded like they would be everything promised in the documentary, but since then I haven’t heard a peep.
Like most good and helpful things, they may have been forced into the dustbin by people who wanted neither.
No shit, Sherlock!
Time for some other nations to be having conspicuous Article 50 “chats.”
Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
Bless their hearts. Adults that still believed in the Energy Fairy.
Did Germany scrap their reactors, or did they mothball them? If mothballed, how long would it take to get them back to generating power?
The sources, which I could find in German, claimed that “in principle,” some reactors could be restarted, but it would take up to 3 years.
Other reactors have in fact been dismantled, and so would need to be replaced with modern nuclear-reactor technology.
Oh no, all those energy expenditures must be eating into Freddie’s coke & hooker budget. Time to backpedal and turn the reactors back on, you drooling nitwit.
Life is hard. It’s even harder when you’re stupid.
Oh my. Trump was right. Again.
>>Keep in mind, Germany represents the largest contributing economy in the European Union. The German industrial sector is the backbone of the European economic model.<<
Keep in mind that ranking by per capita GDP, Germany would be ~18th highest US state
You think Germany’s bad? New York said “hold my beer.”
In 2019 the DemonRat Commies who run this state decided to pass their own version of the Green New Deal. We were supposed to get to Net Zero sometime in the very near future. So former love Guv Andrew Cuomo and his pals decided to take down the Indian Point nuclear power plant which supplied 25 PERCENT of the electricity for Downstate NY and NYC.
As a result, our electricity prices have skyrocketed and going nowhere but UP.
Even worse is the strain on the Grid because these jackasses decided that they also wanted to force us to use even MORE electric power because somehow that was cleaner and better for the environment than fossil fuels. The new power comes from BS “renewables” i.e. wind and solar, that contribute virtually ZERO to the power supply.
These morons in Germany, UK, the USA who destroyed our power supply and who are causing the complete destruction of our way of life including light and heat- should pay the maximum penalty for crimes against Humanity.
Thank God that President Trump is taking bold, sensible actions to do everything possible to get rid of the GND in all its manifestations.
Seneca the Elder!!!
How have you been?
I hope all is well!
“These morons in Germany, UK, the USA who destroyed our power supply and who are causing the complete destruction of our way of life including light and heat- should pay the maximum penalty for crimes against Humanity.”
AMEN!!!
Dear Ausonius- So great to hear from you! I have been super busy, trying to make enough money to continue living in my own home. I really hope that this movement to abolish property tax, at least for seniors, takes off soon. Where I live in Nueva York, we have some of the highest property taxes in the USA.
I still visit the Tree House nearly every day but don’t comment as much as I used to. In all honesty I am making too many comments on all the Substack posts that I subscribe to.
Hope you are well and will be on the lookout for you in the future. Take good care my friend!
Many thanks for the reply! Ohio just limited and restricted property taxes, so we were happy about that, although the elimination of them is still the goal.
I know the magnetism of “Home” first-hand: our one attempt to leave the state (for Georgia) was a disastrous 10-month experiment. Coming back up I-75 and seeing the Cincinnati skyline in 2007 was one of the greatest joys and reliefs in my life!
So, it is easy to say “leave New York” or “California” or other terrible places, but…other people and things bind us to certain places in our pasts, despite their present conditions.
Best Wishes and I hope to catch your comments!
Ausonius
In WNY Cuomo forced a shutdown of a power plant in Dunkirk that had just spent millions on coal scrubbing technology and was in the process of converting to natural gas. We now get our power from… coal fired plants in Pennsylvania. The geniuses in Albany export and sell the power generated at Niagara Falls out of the local area and out of State. Guv Hochul decreed that no new buildings under 7 stories in the State can use natural gas, electric only. You can’t despise these morons enough.
At our age we do not want to leave our home and move to Florida with the rest of our relatives.
However, if we can’t heat our homes or have lights and electricity- we will have no choice. It’s dark and pretty damn cold out there!
Hochul and the Dems are certifiably insane. They remind me of the old joke: ‘what did Socialists use before candles? ELECTRICITY.
Proof yet again that there is no such thing as zero emissions technology. Best you can ever hope for is “elsewhere” emissions.
Uncle sugar cut the credit card..
Between 1987 and 2006, I escorted my German III/IV students on an exchange to Germany, to a small town with a Catholic school west of Cologne.
During those 20 years, I saw and heard nothing positive from too many people about coal or nuclear energy.
Movies were made with Global-Warming agitprop: I remember one particularly awful movie (from the late 1980’s) called Dagmar, where the title character is a high-school girl, an environment-obsessed lunatic constantly protesting coal, oil, nuclear energy, and Western Civilization in general on her campus and elsewhere.
Near the town where our students lived with German families for three weeks lies a huge coal strip-mine, which was supposed to provide coal for energy to the end of this century.
As far as I know Tagebau Hambach is still operating…and being used domestically, not exported to China.
However, Greenpeace and The Green Party have protested its existence for decades.
Maybe that movie is where they got the idea to create the Greta Thunberg character.
Yes, except…the actress looked like a human being and not an angry Martian!
Not to mention these Euroweenies allowed a 7th Century loving horde into their countries that established No Go Zones for the countries’ own Citizens & Law Enforcement. Stupid! Embarrassed that America has to call these idiots Allies.
It’s not that are liberal friends are ignorant, it’s just that they know so much that isn’t so.
It isn’t often that a Chancellor is willing to publicly eat crow.
he means Western Nazarene nations not China/India/Asia etc
We’re learning why the old timers told us to never put all your eggs in one basket.
You really never know what will happen.
These people thought they’d go on forever as they were, living off of Americans being robbed against our will to fund their Socialist lifestyle while we all work like dogs..
Then along comes Donald Trump..
Europe…corporate earnings flat, zero growth, persistent downgrades, yet one the best performing markets…marking the STOXX 600’s largest calendar-year edge over the S&P 500 since 2006.
Funny how that works…actually, it is remarkable
I’ll take funny for $1000.
They are also importing welfare recipients at the same time.
The current EU stock market is being heavily influenced by speculative interest in artificial intelligence. If earnings reports continue to disappoint, the correction could eventually be substantial. That “earnings flat, zero growth, persistent downgrades” part has me questioning whether or not the EU is in a legitimate sustainable market rally that continues year-after-year.
The countries that drives the European economy are all taking on debt and seeing economic downturns. Admittedly, the EU stock market does not present at this time as being detached-from-fundamentals pricing but we’ve seen stock markets like this before turn out to be a bubble that goes *pop* when the detachment finally manifests at the crest.
I wouldn’t touch euro stocks with a ten foot pole. Easy wealth unlock QQQ. Safe 20% a year. 50 bucks a week or whatever you can 10 20 just do it. In a few years if you can not take out you’ll have a nice pile of loot.
Yes, QQQ has been soaring for over a decade. A true darling.
Back in the early oughts, I had occasion to be visiting Copenhagen. On an off day, we did some touring. We ended up, naturally, at the “Little Mermaid” and I was greeted by the sight of hundreds of wind-turbines across the length and breadth of the Sound. I asked our host how many fossil plants were scrapped due to the proliferation of “wind power”. He looked at me, rather incredulously, and said the magic word; “Why, none, of course! We need reliable electricity for our industry.” That’s what happens when you let 16 year olds design your power grid.
Good Morning, Mr. Merz! [Trump was right, again…]
Wall St and Main St are two very different animals.