Habeck’s proposal “tricky”
Economy against cheaper industrial electricity
05/30/2023 01:08 am
The high electricity costs in Germany are forcing sectors with high energy requirements to relocate abroad. Economics Minister Habeck proposes a state-subsidized industrial electricity tariff that should apply until 2030. The economy Schnitzer finds the idea little future-proof.
Economics Monika Schnitzer has criticized Economics Minister Robert Habeck’s plans to offer a discounted electricity tariff for industry. “I think the planned industrial electricity price is delicate,” she told the Funke newspapers. “If we don’t massively subsidize electricity prices now, there will be a structural change, yes – but that in itself is not bad.” If the particularly energy-intensive companies relocated their production abroad, that would not significantly reduce value creation in Germany. “We can handle that.”
Schnitzer emphasized: “If you always try to maintain the current economic structure, that is not very future-oriented. We should concentrate on the manufacture of high-quality products – and not preserve the basic industry at any price.” Germany “doesn’t necessarily have to produce ammonia,” said Schnitzer, referring to the oil price crisis in the 1970s. This is “a good example of how industry can adapt. In Japan, for example, the petrochemical industry was declining at the time and the automotive and electronics industries were growing”.
Lindner sees no leeway in the budget
A reduced industrial electricity tariff is controversial within the traffic light coalition. A working paper by Habeck from the beginning of May envisages capping the electricity price for energy-intensive branches of industry that are in international competition with state funds at six cents per kilowatt hour for a maximum of 80 percent of consumption by 2030. This is intended to prevent important companies from leaving the country until enough electricity is produced with renewables to keep the price low without subsidies. The green politician is in favor of an introduction by next spring. The money for this should come from the Economic Stabilization Fund (WSF), which was set up for the Corona crisis.
The FDP in particular has so far rejected the plans. Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner considers it constitutionally impermissible to use funds from the Corona Pandemic Crisis Fund WSF. According to the ministry, no other funds are available. The head of the FDP was also fundamentally critical of an industrial electricity price, since it should only benefit energy-intensive industrial companies and not other companies.