Protest in Cottbus: LEAG employees are fighting for southern bonus for gas power plants!

Protest in Cottbus: LEAG employees are fighting for southern bonus for gas power plants!

On June 12, 2025, a proposal by Federal Minister of Economics Katharina Reiche (CDU) provides protests in the energy industry. In the future, two thirds of the gas power plant performance planned in Germany are to be built in the south of the country. According to the current plans, which were published by rbb24, about 13.3 out of 20 gigawatt to new power plant capacity to Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. This means that only 6.7 gigawatts are available for the rest of Germany.

in Cottbus, where more than 1,500 employees of Leag (Lausitz Energie Nuclear Power AG) protested against the proposed “Südbonus”, Uwe Teubner, the chairman of the Group Works Council, expresses concern. He explained that this bonus endangers the future development perspectives of LEAG and instead calls for a transformation bonus for the gas power plants in Lusatia. Regions such as the Lausitz, which are dependent on replacement investments after the coal phase -out, could be disadvantaged by this decision.

strategic importance of Lausitz

LEAG plans to build hydrogen -capable gas power plants at the locations black pump and Jänschwalde. These systems should provide important support, especially in times of dark downs, if renewable energies are not available. The existing infrastructure and the existing power plant locations offer technically good prerequisites for the construction of new flexible power plants in Lusatia. These investments are central to structural change in the region and help to secure jobs and industrial location.

Nevertheless, the south bonus could endanger the willingness to invest in Lusatia. The EU Commission must first agree to the proposal before it can be implemented. In the coming years, however, an increase in the construction of gas power plants will be forecast. It is expected that around 40 new gas power plants will arise if the 20 gigawatts agreed in the coalition agreement can be realized in "secured performance", such as MDR

regional developments

An example of these developments is the planned gas power plant in Schkopau, initiated by the Saxony-Anhalt's Energy Minister, Armin Willingmann. In Schkopau, where the state's largest coal is located, the switch to a gas power plant is considered advantageous. According to the law, the lignite power in this region is to be ended by 2038 and, according to operating plans, until 2034. It is all the more important to start planning for the new gas power plants to ensure seamless transitions in the energy sector.

The upcoming changes in energy supply therefore require both political and practical solutions to take into account the concerns of all regions in Germany.