German Chancellor Angela Merkel promised on Wednesday to scale back Germany's generous system of subsidies to the renewables sector if she is re-elected in September, a move that would reduce the costs of her green revolution on consumers.

 

Merkel's policy to wean Europe's biggest power market off fossil fuels and to embrace renewables has led to a boom in green energy sources, but ballooning costs have led to calls for cuts to feed-in tariffs and for industry to pay more.

 

Energy prices are likely to become a hot election topic as consumers have been hit by surcharges which pay for the energy shift. Due in part to fears that German industry will become uncompetitive if it has to pay too much for energy, many firms have enjoyed exemptions from some of charges, raising the bill for households.

 

She also reiterated her priorities of power supply security, affordability and a focus on climate protection.

 

But Merkel, who polls show is likely to win a third term albeit possibly with a different coalition partner, gave few details of her plans.

 

The conservative chancellor may have to abandon her current partner, the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) and form a 'grand coalition' with the opposition Social Democrats (SPD) who traditionally support the coal industry but who with the Greens originally started Germany's nuclear phase out.