Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Robert Habeck (Greens) has not yet given up the fight to preserve the solar industry in Germany. Following a meeting with SMEs in Frankfurt on Monday, Habeck reacted to the announcement by Dresden-based company Solarwatt that it would be halting the production of solar modules for the time being at the end of August.
Habeck said that he would have liked the solar package passed last week to have included a resilience bonus, a "small allowance" for sustainable German production. This would have reduced the price difference to Chinese solar panels and kept these companies in the market. "That was not possible now," said Habeck, referring to the FDP, which had rejected such a bonus.
Habeck has now announced the rapid implementation of the EU's so-called Net Zero Industry Act in order to strengthen the competitiveness of the solar industry. This stipulates certain production shares for renewable energies in Europe. "We actually have a year and a half. We will now try to do this more quickly," said the Minister. "I hope that the companies will hold out until then."
At the end of March, Meyer Burger announced the final closure of its site in Freiberg, Saxony. The approximately 500 employees were given their notice. The company had made the future of the Freiberg site dependent on state support.
Solarwatt Managing Director Detlef Neuhaus said on Monday in Dresden about the halt to solar module production: "The aggressive cut-throat competition in the solar industry leaves us with no other choice." However, the 30 years of experience in the development and optimization of photovoltaic hardware will be retained at the Dresden site. If market conditions should improve again, production could be ramped up again quickly. Solarwatt employs 750 people across Europe, 650 of them in Germany. Around 190 employees are affected by the suspension of German production.
Copyright 2024, dpa (www.dpa.de). All rights reserved
