GREEN ENERGY

Denmark has the highest electricity prices in Europe, according to Eurostat, not least because fees and taxes double the production price. Those prices are now set to go even higher.

A broad political agreement on energy hammered out yesterday sets an ambitious target for Denmark to be completely independent of coal and oil by 2050. For that to happen, there will have to be a huge increase in wind and wave power, plus the gradual elimination of oil tanks for heating homes. The bill for doing this will come from new taxes on electricity, starting in 2020.

The problem is that if you want to heat homes by using geothermal instead of oil, then you need extra electricity to power the pumps. Putting taxes on a product tends to reduce demand for it, so new electricity taxes will work against your desired aim. The country's economic "wise men" have already pointed out the inconsistency in the proposed plan.

It is not easy to be green, even in Denmark.

Walter Blotscher