Germany, Europe's largest economy, has pledged to phase out fossil fuels by 2045, following heated debate over its environmental policies. It would be the third country after France and the Netherlands to adopt a national roadmap under an international effort to move away from fossil fuels, the spokesperson added.

In a roadmap released on September 23, the German government made an explicit commitment for the first time to "transitioning away" from fossil fuels. Earlier pledges had only aimed at "carbon neutrality".

The plans involve raising renewable energy's share of electricity generation from 55% to 80% by 2030, adding 12GW of onshore wind, and reaching 215GW of solar energy by 2030. The earlier goal of reducing coal use over the next decade, with a view to quitting coal by 2038, was reaffirmed, with a possible earlier deadline of 2035.

Methane emissions, a greenhouse gas 80 times stronger than carbon dioxide, will be reduced by 30% by 2030, in line with a global methane pledge signed in 2021.

Andreas Sieber, head of global political strategy at 350.org, called the plan a "notable shift" in making the fossil fuel phaseout an explicit policy goal. But he cautioned that Germany's ministry for economic affairs and energy was also strongly promoting greater gas use

"The economic ministry keeps sabotaging the transition away from fossil fuels," he said. "This year has shown in the starkest terms that fossil-fuel dependence is a risk for everyone as it exposes households and businesses in Germany and around the world to price shocks, volatility and geopolitical insecurity."

Germany's former climate envoy Jennifer Morgan said the government needed to do more to electrify transport and heating. "Accelerating the shift from coal, oil and gas to clean renewables will bolster energy independence and insulate consumers from price shocks at a critical moment," she said. "However, a roadmap is only the starting line."

She added that the strategy must be combined with a faster, more determined rollout of green electrification.

Germany is the third major developed economy to publish such a roadmap, after France and the Netherlands, following a major international conference in Colombia in April at which all participants promised to set out plans for a full phaseout of fossil fuels.

It comes after nations debated how to expand their currently inadequate efforts to tackle the climate crisis at the UN general assembly in New York. Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, has been a strong advocate of climate action during his 10 years in office, but the end of his term this December has raised fears that his successor may be less firm.

The UK has still not published its pledge to phase out fossil fuels, and will take up the presidency of the G20 group of developed and developing economies in December, for which the climate and the soaring costs of oil and gas are expected to be key issues.