Deutsche Bahn has announced that country’s 15 largest stations will use green electricity, as part of company’s 2030 commitment on increasing the share of the green traction system to 80%. DB plans to switch the use of 70 gigawatt hours to green electricity, representing 20% of the total annual electricity consumption of all stations in Germany.
“Environmental and climate protection are the challenges of the 21st century. Climate protection starts with us when entering the station. Our stations now have a firm place in our environmental strategy,” Ronald Pofalla, DB Board Member for Infrastructure, said.
The new green electricity initiative comprises the 15 most frequented traffic stations in the country, including six train stations in Berlin, the main train stations Hamburg, Hanover, Dusseldorf, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Nuremberg, as well as Munich central station and Munich Marienplatz. By using renewable energies to supply the stations, DB will save around 35,000 tonnes of CO2 a year. The 15 stations are used daily by 4.26 million people.
The new station buildings of Lutherstadt Wittenberg and Kerpen-Horrem as well as the ICE plant in Cologne are already completely climate-neutral.
Currently, DB is country’s largest green electricity consumer. Last year, the share of green electricity increased by 13%, from 44% to 57% and by the end of 2019, DB plans to reach a 60%. By investing EUR 50 million, the company will rely on a growing share of electricity from renewable energy to achieve the 80%-target for 2030, when the CO2 emissions will be reduced by 50%. For 2050, Deutsche Bahn intends to become a CO2-free company.
Photo: Uwe Miethe/Deutsche Bahn AG
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