The energy company RWE has called on the squatters to refrain from violence ahead of the expected eviction of the village of Lützerath for lignite mining on Wednesday.

"Violence towards police or deployed employees is completely unacceptable," the utility company emphasized in a statement published this morning. RWE is calling on the squatters to respect the rule of law and to peacefully end the illegal occupation of the houses, facilities and areas belonging to RWE. "No one should put themselves in danger through unlawful actions."

RWE wants to demolish the village in order to be able to excavate the lignite beneath it. Climate activists who are occupying the village are protesting against the plans. Lützerath has become a symbol of the anti-coal movement.

RWE pointed out that coal mining was necessary in order to operate the Braunhohle power plants at high capacity and thus save gas in electricity generation in Germany. RWE had reached an agreement with the federal government and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, according to which the company intends to bring forward the coal phase-out by eight years to 2030. The original population of just under 100 in the small village had all been relocated.

(Report by Tom Käckenhoff; Edited by Hans Busemann; If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)