BERLIN: The German government has agreed on a broad legislative package to accelerate the expansion of renewable energy, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action said in a statement.The package will now be submitted to Parliament. "Renewable energy will be in the public interest and assist public safety in the future. It's critical to pick up the pace "Robert Habeck, the Minister of Energy, stated. The Ministry said, renewable energy expansion would be "taken to a whole new level." By 2030, renewable energy should account for 80 percent of Germany's electricity, with the government aiming for 100 percent by 2035. To meet these goals, onshore wind energy must grow by 10 gigawatts (GW) per year until it reaches a total installed capacity of around 115 GW in 2030. Solar power plants are expected to develop at a rate of 22 GW per year by 2030, with a total capacity of 215 GW. Apart from the rising climate issue, the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine demonstrates the importance of "getting out of fossil fuels and continually driving forward the spread of renewables," said Habeck. "We're doing it with bravery and consistency." Germany has already stated that by the middle of this year, it will have cut its Russian oil imports in half and will be almost self-sufficient by the end of 2022. By mid-2024, reliance on Russian gas will be substantially eliminated. France to expel dozens of Russian diplomats German airline traffic across Europe disrupted due to mass walkouts China pledges to follow dynamic zero-Covid approach as cases mount