Siegfried Russwurm, President of the Federation of German Industries (BDI), wants permanently lower electricity prices for companies in Germany
Source: pa/dpa/Jörg Carstensen
According to a survey, 16 percent of companies are already partly relocating production abroad, and twice as many are considering it. In order to turn things around, politicians have to react, says BDI boss Russwurm. The industry wants support in three areas in particular.
Dhe German companies are skeptical about the current situation, especially medium-sized companies. This shows a survey by the industry association BDI shows that WELT AM SONNTAG is available. Accordingly, the companies surveyed consider the issues of labor costs and skills shortagehigh energy and raw material prices as well as the complex bureaucracy in Germany as the biggest problems for the location.
Of the 392 medium-sized companies that took part in the BDI survey, 76 percent believe that there is a shortage of skilled workers and 62 percent that there is a high one energy prices for the biggest challenges. “Almost half of the companies (45 percent) have been shelving investments in ecological transformation since the ‘turn of the era’,” says the study. Only every sixth company (17 percent), on the other hand, is accelerating its investments in this area.
Even more dramatic: 15 percent of the companies have reduced production in Germany or even stopped it completely. Compared to a similar survey in February last year, this is an increase of at least eight percentage points.
The development is becoming a problem for Germany: “There is no all-clear for the situation in Germany as an industrial location,” says BDI President Siegfried Russwurm WELT AM SONNTAG. “16 percent of the companies surveyed are already actively relocating parts of production and jobs abroad. Another 30 percent are thinking about it specifically.”
The BDI boss therefore makes demands on politicians. “For more investment, industry needs a noticeable reduction in bureaucracy and targeted tax cuts,” he says. Politicians are responsible for improving the framework conditions at the location.
Russwurm calls for the electricity price for industry to be lowered “urgently, reliably and permanently to a competitive level”, otherwise the transformation in the industry threatens to fail. The BDI therefore expects the federal government to come up with a concept that can be implemented quickly and that will ensure a secure supply of energy at internationally competitive costs in the long term.
On this issue, the BDI boss agrees, at least in part, with Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens). The Vice Chancellor wants to introduce reduced electricity prices for energy-intensive companies by spring 2024 in order to keep them competitive with foreign companies.
However, there is disagreement between other associations and Habeck as to who should be the beneficiary of this subsidy. Parts of the economy demand that industrial electricity price not only for a small group of companies by the year 2030, but for the entire industry.
Russwurm demands support from politicians not only for the high electricity and gas prices. He also considers support from Berlin to be necessary in other areas. “Around three quarters of companies complain that labor costs are too high, not least because of the serious shortage of skilled workers,” says the BDI boss. “Despite the reform of the Skilled Immigration Act, the main obstacles to targeted economic migration are still complicated and lengthy administrative procedures.”
Economy already in recession
For the government, the survey should be a warning sign. Already in the first quarter the German economy slipped into the recession away. Economists of German banks are now even expecting a minus for the year as a whole. The Deutsche Bank for example, expects a decline in economic output of 0.3 percent.
“Everything on shares” is the daily stock exchange shot from the WELT business editorial team. Every morning from 7 a.m. with our financial journalists. For stock market experts and beginners. Subscribe to the podcast at Spotify, Apple Podcast, Amazon Music and Deezer. Or directly by RSS-Feed.