Left-wing politicians call for more support for the German solar industry

Leading left-wing politicians are demanding more support for the German solar industry from the federal government. "Launch massive public tenders for the purchase of solar modules," reads a letter addressed to Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) and Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP), for example. The letter was signed by MEP Cornelia Ernst, Member of the Bundestag Ralph Lenkert and the state chairmen of the Left Party from Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, among others, as Ernst announced on Wednesday.

The Left Party warns that eastern German locations and suppliers in particular are threatened by possible closures, which could have serious consequences for the political climate in eastern Germany.

In the opinion of the Left Party, the public sector can provide a remedy and empty full inventories. Such investments would not only make sense in terms of industrial policy, they would also reduce public spending on electricity. The MEPs are also calling for the German government to approve the EU Supply Chain Act in order to compensate for competitive disadvantages for European solar module manufacturers.

The German and European solar industry is currently under pressure. At the beginning of February, the European Solar Manufacturers' Association ESMC sounded the alarm. The solar industry in Europe is facing an existential threat, it said. If political decision-makers did not take immediate action to protect solar module manufacturers in the EU, the only options would be to relocate abroad or go bankrupt, the association said.