"There is no way back, " says Michael Wunnerlich, who's on the management board of the BDEW, which represents the electricity generation industry.

BBC: Who pays for the greening of Germany?

As a result, the German power generators' association, the BDEW, says gas-fired electricity output in Germany fell last year by 13bn kilowatt hours, or 16 per cent, while coal-fired plants upped output by the same amount, recording a 5 per cent increase to 275.8bn kWh.

CNN: Shale gas boom sparks EU coal revival