Germany, which once dominated Europe based on manufacturing technology, has recently fallen to become the 'sick man of Europe' due to high energy expenses. The United States, aiming for supremacy in artificial intelligence (AI), declared an energy emergency and devoted itself to securing energy. With the advancement of high-tech, energy has become a determinant of national fortune. This examines the current and future energy policies of South Korea through the cases of Germany and the United States.[Editor’s note]
In the federal parliamentary elections held on the 23rd of last month (local time), the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) coalition led by Friedrich Merz defeated the Social Democratic Party (SPD) led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz to achieve a change in government. With four out of five voters heading to the polls, this election recorded the highest turnout since German reunification and is seen as a 'judgment vote' against the previous government that failed to secure energy sovereignty.
Merz, the leader of the victorious CDU and a strong candidate to be the next Chancellor of Germany, is expected to focus on normalizing Germany's energy crisis after taking office. He has criticized the nuclear phase-out policy for some time and has stated his intention to build 50 thermal power plants after assuming office.
Merz is a lawyer by training who majored in law at Bonn University and Marburg University. He entered politics in 1989 at the age of 34 as a member of the European Parliament. Subsequently, he was elected to the Federal Diet in 1994 and became the parliamentary leader of the CDU-CSU coalition in 2000, stepping into the political limelight. However, after the 2002 elections, he relinquished the parliamentary leadership position to Angela Merkel and withdrew from politics by declining to run in the 2009 elections.
After leaving politics, Merz worked as a lawyer and lobbyist. He was responsible for corporate-related legal practice at the global law firm Mayer Brown and served as the chairman of the board of the German branch of BlackRock, the world's largest asset management firm, gaining insight into global economic trends. During this time, he amassed substantial wealth, even arranging for two private jets.
In 2018, when Merkel stepped down from her position as CDU leader and abandoned her bid for reelection as Chancellor, Merz announced his return to politics by running for the party leadership election. Subsequently, the CDU and CSU, to which Merz belongs, secured 22.6% and 6% of the vote respectively in the recent elections, becoming the largest party. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) followed with 20.8%, while the ruling party led by Chancellor Scholz dropped to third place with 16.4%. Merz's victory in this election amid an economic crisis is seen as a testament to his image as an 'economic expert' built through his past experience.
Merkel, who became Chancellor after pushing Merz out of the party, implemented a strengthened nuclear phase-out policy in 2011 and declared a complete shutdown of nuclear power plants by 2022. Although this goal was delayed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was eventually achieved in 2023 under her successor, Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
He has consistently criticized Merkel's nuclear phase-out plan and Scholz's implementation of the phase-out from outside the political sphere and publicly stated that he would reconsider the phase-out ahead of this year's elections. Additionally, the CDU-CSU members that Merz belongs to have called for an evaluation of whether the nuclear plants closed in the second half of last year could be restarted.
They criticized in a separate report that “Chancellor Olaf Scholz's nuclear phase-out policy is a misguided decision based on ideology.” Rafael Grossi, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also mentioned last year that “it would be reasonable for Germany to return to nuclear power generation.”
Germany, which has failed in its energy policy, is also preparing to expand fossil-fuel-based power generation. Merz stated during his campaign in January that if he wins the early elections next month, he would build 50 gas-fired power plants in Germany as soon as possible, noting that “the closure of the last nuclear power plant by the previous Scholz government was a serious strategic mistake.”
U.S. President Donald Trump stated on his social media platform Truth Social after the German elections that “the German people are tired of the senseless agenda that has persisted for years, especially regarding energy and immigration issues. Congratulations to all, and there will be more victories to come.”
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