The energy company RWE is making rapid progress with the demolition of the village of Lützerath in the Rhenish lignite mining area.

The dismantling will take another eight to ten days, the "Rheinische Post" reported in advance in its Monday edition, citing a company spokesperson. "The open-cast mine could then reach the former village and excavate it in March or April," the RWE spokesperson announced.

RWE wants to demolish Lützerath in order to be able to excavate the lignite located under the village. Lützerath has been evacuated by massive police forces since Wednesday. According to police reports, around 15,000 people demonstrated against the mining on Saturday. More than 70 police officers were injured during riots on the fringes of the demonstrations.

(Report by Anneli Palmen, edited by Jörn Poltz. If you have any queries, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)