Ariadne – Evidence-Based Assessment for the Design of the German Energy System Transformation

The Kopernikus project Ariadne is researching which policy instruments are suitable for reaching the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement in Germany. From a better understanding of the effects of individual political measures and policy paths to an overview of the entire system – together with actors from politics, energy system transformation research and society, the project is investigating meaningful strategies for energy system transformation and their acceptance by citizens.

According to the current state of knowledge, the political efforts of the German Federal Republic are not sufficient to achieve its own ambitious climate protection goals. Ariadne shows possibilities to change this and provides feasible options for shaping policy in such a way that compliance with climate protection targets would be possible with socially accepted policy instruments.

The Technology Assessment group is contributing to these activities by providing its expertise in advanced LCA: In collaboration with PIK Potsdam and other partners, prospective LCA representing different transformation pathways for Germany will be carried out. We aim at a coupling of PIK’s Integrated Assessment Model REMIND with prospective versions of the ecoinvent LCA database, supplemented by inventory data to be established for decarbonization options such as hydrogen technologies, synthetic fuels, CCS, “green industry”, electric mobility, carbon dioxide removal options, etc. Ultimately, this will allow for a comprehensive evaluation of technology options and transformation pathways from the environmental perspective, highlighting environmental co-benefits and adverse side-effects associated with pathways towards net-zero GHG emissions.

The project will continuously generate outputs targeted at different audiences including policy makers, the broad public, and the research community.