DIHK demands cheaper energy - Rehlinger: Ramp-up of e-mobility necessary

The German economy has outlined its expectations for the economy meetings planned for Tuesday with the traffic light coalition members. It demands from the federal government a reduction in energy costs for all companies, not just for the industry. “A central task for politics is to ensure a permanently stable and competitive energy supply for the broad spectrum of companies,” said the President of the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK), Peter Adrian, to the “Rheinische Post.” 

However, Union faction leader Friedrich Merz does not expect concrete results from the events. “Nothing will come of it except for a show by the SPD, the FDP, and the Greens, who will then propose another 100 billion in additional debts,” said the CDU chairman on the ARD program “Bericht aus Berlin.”

Each coalition partner with its own economic initiative

The coalition is currently debating economic policy. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has invited to an industry summit at the Chancellery on Tuesday. Economic Minister Robert Habeck (Green) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) are excluded. The FDP parliamentary group - with Lindner as a guest - wants to meet with economic representatives on the same day. Habeck, in turn, proposed a debt-financed “Germany Fund” after Scholz's announcement to promote investments.

Merz referred to it as “kindergarten games” on ARD that the coalition partners did not coordinate their economic initiatives with each other before announcing them. “That the Chancellor announces such an industry summit in a government declaration without having previously involved the Economic Minister and the Finance Minister in preparing for such a summit is, in itself, an incident that is symptomatic of the state of the federal government,” said the Union's Chancellor candidate.

Rehlinger: We need a boost in e-mobility

Saarland Prime Minister Anke Rehlinger (SPD) expressed her annoyance on the ARD program “Bericht aus Berlin” over the behavior of the traffic light coalition members. “In a coalition, it's not about laying out party programs for individual benefit but about laying out ideas and creating policy from them.” It’s about jobs and people who have hopes but also concerns. “And there needs to be an answer to that. I hope that they will come together now. I honestly expect it as well.” Rehlinger further stated that now there need to be signals for competitive energy prices.

“We need a boost in e-mobility. We must grow faster and larger, and investments need to be made in Germany.”

Relief from Energy Prices Necessary

DIHK President Adrian mentioned as the first important step for relief from energy prices "the takeover of grid fees by the Climate and Transformation Fund as proposed by us." However, further steps are necessary to improve the tangible supply of energy for the future. "Lower prices for a few large enterprises and bureaucratic subsidy programs alone are not a sufficient concept for this." Besides the issue of energy, the issue of reducing bureaucracy is pressing for the economy. "It must be reflected concretely in the companies that it really becomes easier in everyday life – not just in Sunday speeches or theoretically in the official gazette," said Adrian.