A group of German business leaders have written an open letter to Chancellor Friedrich Merz demanding a roll-back of decarbonisation policies before the damage to Germany's economy becomes irreversible. This is a machine translation of the text.
Federal Chancellery
Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz
Willy-Brandt-Straße 1
10557 Berlin
03.07.2025
It’s Five Past Twelve – Therefore, Industrial Jobs NOW!
Dear Federal Chancellor,
We are in the worst economic crisis since World War II. Last year alone, at least 100,000 industrial jobs were cut without replacement. The political promises of the previous government about a "green economic miracle" are nothing but empty words. The reality is that never before have so many good jobs been at risk as they are today.
In Germany alone, far more than a million people work in energy-intensive industries, most of them in sectors represented by IGBCE and IG Metall. Therefore, we need an Industry and Economic Agenda 2030 NOW!
We need innovations and investments for good jobs and livable regions. We don’t want subsidies handed out arbitrarily, but reasonable framework conditions so that good jobs and value creation in Germany have a future again.
As true as the complaints about paralyzing bureaucracy and delayed digitization are, it is equally true that German energy policy has become one of the most dangerous risks for business and location.
If the energy transition is an operation on the open heart of our economy, as is sometimes said, then it has so far been thoroughly botched. We have to acknowledge: the patient is at risk of dying on the operating table.
For 35 years, PV and wind have been legally privileged and subsidized. However, they still do not contribute significantly more to security of supply than they did three decades ago. Instead, they are causing grid costs in the triple-digit billion range.
The phase-out of nuclear energy and coal has made Germany dependent on unreliable PV and wind power and expensive gas imports. We are paying the price, with the highest electricity prices in Europe. Never before has our electricity supply been so expensive and insecure.
These high electricity prices are not only socially unjust, but they now also threaten our economy, our prosperity, and our social peace.
We demand:
➢ Electricity prices must become internationally competitive again for the economy, especially for the industry. We need an industrial electricity price of 5 ct/kWh. This industrial electricity price must not be further increased by political CO2 costs or overloaded with other requirements.
➢ Permanent full exemption from transmission charges for energy-intensive production, continuation of relief under §19.2 StromNEV, and free connection to the electricity infrastructure with the required capacity.
➢ No further burdens on the self-supply of electricity in the industry. Industrial electricity networks and CHP self-supply are important economic assets and location factors that must be strengthened in international competition.
➢ Instead of further preliminary efforts by Germany and Europe in climate protection, we expect the establishment of a clear linkage: All relevant countries worldwide must commit to equal efforts.
➢ Protection of the industry from the special burdens of the EU ETS through an effective CBAM that includes exports, excludes circumvention, and expands the product scope according to the actual competitive situation.
➢ Upgrading and modernization of foreign trade protection through a fundamental revision of the existing anti-dumping and anti-subsidy instruments of the EU, especially with regard to China.
➢ Fundamental revision of the German hydrogen strategy with the goal of pragmatic and realistic requirements for technology and objectives. For the realistic case that European and international "green lead markets" cannot be implemented promptly, competitive alternatives to H2 must be enabled.
➢ Immediate adoption of an investment-friendly legislative package to enable CCU/S, including state risk coverage and infrastructure investments without technical or industry-specific selection.
➢ Moratorium on power plant shutdowns: New secured capacity must be available before shutdowns occur.
➢ Stop the haphazard expansion of PV and wind: Approvals only for grid-compatible investments.
Dear Federal Chancellor, the German energy transition threatens to overwhelm Germany as a business location – and with it all our colleagues. Instead of further perseverance slogans and sugarcoating, we finally expect clear statements and signals about which specific measures the federal government will take to correct the misdevelopments in German energy and climate policy and make our energy supply internationally competitive again.
The actions of this federal government will not only abstractly determine the future of Germany as an industrial location. Your actions will concretely determine the future of millions of good industrial jobs. The time for empty words is over. Our colleagues will measure this government by its actions!
Sincerely,
Uwe Teubner
Chairman Group Works Council LEAG Toralf Smith Chairman of the General Works Council Lausitz Energie Kraftwerke AG
Stephanie Albrecht-Suliak
Regional Chairwoman IGBCE Regional District Northeast Dirk Vogeler Chairman of the Works Council ArcelorMittal Eisenhüttenstadt
Enrico Symanzig
Chairman of the Works Council BASF Schwarzheide Gmb
FROM THE ARCHIVE:
[ Germany running out of money ] ... [ Germany burns Net Zero pledges ] ... [ EU drops Net Zero targets for farmers ] ... [ Net Zero will bankrupt nations ] ... [ Net Zero destroying civilisation ]
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