US President Donald Trump speaks at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos. Credit: Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic forum/dpa
US President Donald Trump has claimed that German electricity production has shrunk considerably since 2017, blaming the alleged decline on the country’s previous centre-left administration.
“Here in Europe, we’ve seen the fate that the radical left tried to impose on America,” Trump said during a highly anticipated speech at a major gathering of world and business leaders in Switzerland.
“They tried very hard. Germany now generates 22% less electricity than it did in 2017 and it’s not the current chancellor’s fault. He’s solving the problem,” Trump told the World Economic Forum in Davos.
“He’s going to do a great job, but what they did before he got there, I guess that’s why he got there.”
Trump is a known critic of renewable energy, which was heavily promoted by the centre-left administration of German chancellor Olaf Scholz between 2021 and 2025.
The new conservative-led government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, which took over in May last year, has pursued a more cautious approach on the expansion of renewables, arguing that efforts should centre on reliability, supply security, affordability and cost-effectiveness.
