Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will hold a summit soon with Germany's major energy firms as well as his economy and environment ministers who are at odds over future energy strategy, government sources said yesterday.

Environment Minister Juergen Trittin, a leading Green, was not invited last month when Schroeder and Economy Minister Wolfgang Clement, both Social Democrats, met the heads of Germany's four biggest energy firms.

A government source told Reuters the chancellor would hold another summit, this month if possible, with Mr Trittin also present.

Nuclear power makes up about 30 per cent of Germany's electricity supply. But after years of anti-nuclear protests, a deal was struck in 2001 to close nuclear plants by 2020.

At the same time, Germany is committed by the international Kyoto Protocol to slash the carbon dioxide emissions that are produced by burning fossil fuels and blamed for global warming.

With that in mind, Mr Trittin wants to increase subsidies for wind, solar and other renewable energy sources to double their contribution to total electricity generated to 12.5 per cent by 2010.

Clement prefers new investment in modern coal power stations to replace ageing plants due to come off the grid in the next 20 years and wants more targeted subsidies for renewable energy.