Carbon-neutral state administration

Short study commissioned by the Scientific Climate Advisory Council of Hesse

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The Climate Act of the State of Hesse (HKlimaG), passed in January 2023, obliges the state administration to operate in a net greenhouse gas-neutral manner by 2030 and to achieve complete net GHG neutrality by 2045 at the latest – in accordance with federal legal requirements. The targets are to be achieved in particular by reducing energy consumption and ensuring the efficient and emission-neutral provision, conversion, use and storage of thermal and electrical energy, as well as through the use of renewable energies. Unavoidable emissions may be offset by compensation payments.

Against this backdrop, ifeu is investigating how these requirements can be met from a technical, organisational and financial perspective. To this end, ifeu is modelling three scenarios: a trend scenario based on current developments, the ‘Hesse trend’ reflecting the ambitions set out in the legislation, and an ambitious target scenario that incorporates maximum but realistic reduction measures. The analysis covers final energy savings, GHG reduction pathways, transformation costs for the building stock, and the long-term cost effects of a compensation strategy.

Based on these results, ifeu derives recommendations that emphasise, in particular, strengthening the implementation of existing policy guidelines, increasing the renovation rate, sufficiency-oriented space reductions, and an accelerated energy source transition. The analyses also show that ambitious renovation strategies are more cost-effective in the long term than a heavy reliance on offsets, whose effectiveness and availability are becoming increasingly uncertain.

Finally, ifeu recommends further developing Section 7 of the HKlimaG and establishing net GHG neutrality by 2045 as a central guideline – supplemented by clear annual reduction targets and a modernised accounting framework to ensure the transparency, consistency and sustainability of the state's climate strategy.