CDU/CSU
Germany's governing centre-right alliance; CDU and CSU form a joint parliamentary group under Chancellor Merz.
CDU/CSU carried Germany's StromVKG capacity law through the Bundestag on 9 July 2026, commissioning 11 GW of hydrogen-ready gas plants after its Coalition partner, the SPD, dropped an April threat to block the programme.
Last refreshed: 28 September 2026 · Appears in 2 active topics
Can Merz's CDU/CSU push through the gas plant law without SPD consent?
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Voted for StromVKG alongside the SPD
European Energy Markets: StromVKG passes, bid ceiling up 41%Mentioned in: Greens push H2 clause in StromVKG
European Energy MarketsMentioned in: Germany sets September 2026 for first 8 GW gas auction
European Energy MarketsMentioned in: Bundestag committee passes KVDG; AfD alone opposed
Nomads & CommunitiesMentioned in: EC confirms 22 April energy crisis package
European Energy MarketsBackground
CDU/CSU leads Germany's federal government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in Coalition with the SPD. Its Economy Ministry, under Katherina Reiche, wrote the programme of hydrogen-ready gas plants meant to back up renewables. The bloc then carried the StromVKG capacity law that funds it on 9 July 2026.
the Alliance joins two parties. The Christian Democratic Union organises in every German state except Bavaria, where the Christian Social Union stands instead, and the two sit as one parliamentary group in the Bundestag. Both grew out of the Christian democratic movement founded after 1945, and the Union has led Germany for most of the post-war period, under chancellors including Konrad Adenauer, Helmut Kohl and Angela Merkel.
The Merkel years shaped the energy system the current government inherited, including the accelerated nuclear exit after Fukushima in 2011 and heavy Reliance on imported gas. Merz leads from the party's economically liberal wing and has made industrial competitiveness a central theme, which puts secure and affordable power at the top of the bloc's energy agenda.
Its gas-plant law clears the Bundestag
The Bundestag passed the StromVKG in final plenary on 9 July, with CDU/CSU and SPD votes against the AfD, The Greens and the Left. The law commissions 11 GW of hydrogen-ready gas capacity, tendered first in two 4.5 GW rounds scheduled for 8 September and 22 December 2026. Committee stage raised the bid ceiling 41% to €244,000/MW and directed one-third of new capacity to the north and two-thirds to the south.
For CDU/CSU, whose Economy Ministry wrote the programme, the result is the dispatchable backup it sought, bought at a higher auction ceiling. On 17 June The Greens tabled a clause requiring winning plants to show a hydrogen-conversion pathway; the motion failed at committee and stayed out of the final law.
Its partner threatened to block the law
On 16 April the SPD-led Environment Ministry threatened to block the CDU/CSU Economy Ministry's draft law for a 10 GW auction of hydrogen-capable gas plants. The draft was three years into preparation, and the SPD ministry demanded carve-outs for renewables.
The Economy Ministry pressed ahead. A draft published on 22 April set the first auction for September 2026, covering 8 GW of hydrogen-ready gas plants plus 2 GW of other technologies, all due online by 2031, although the Environment Ministry had still not signed off. The dispute closed in May, when the programme was agreed with the European Commission, and the SPD voted for the final law in July.
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Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 28 September 2026. Editorial standards.