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Steel bars outside the Lech steelworks: Production stop due to high electricity prices
Photo: MICHAELA REHLE/ REUTERS
The energy-intensive steel industry is increasingly worried about the sharp rise in electricity costs.
As one of the first plants in Germany, the Lech steel works in Meitingen, Bavaria, have stopped production.
"We shut down production on a daily basis," said a company spokesman.
"Production does not make economic sense." The situation was dramatically aggravated by the war in Ukraine, it said.
The company announced that it would continue to closely monitor the development of electricity prices and then react to it.
According to the company, the electric steelworks produces more than a million tons of the material every year.
The power consumption corresponds to that of a city with around 300,000 inhabitants.
Including subsidiaries, more than 1000 people are employed at the site.
It is the only steelworks in Bavaria.
Cabinet decides to abolish the EEG surcharge
Consumers and companies should no longer pay the EEG levy on their electricity bills from July.
In view of the rapidly rising energy prices, the federal cabinet initiated a corresponding relief yesterday, Wednesday.
Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Die Grünen) had spoken against the background of the recent significant rise in electricity prices and rising inflation that early abolition could “reduce the pressure somewhat”.
But he also said: "But in view of the now exorbitantly increased prices, we have to talk about further relief." In addition, the German energy supply must be "put on a more robust footing".
This applies to the expansion of renewable energies as well as the construction of LNG terminals.
Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) announced that people and companies would now be relieved by a total of 6.6 billion euros.
In view of the current price increases, this is a “first measure”.
Most recently, he had not planned any further relief, but announced high investments in climate protection.
In future, subsidies for renewable energies are to come from the government's climate fund.
The federal government bears the costs, the budgets of the federal states and municipalities should not be burdened.
hey/Reuters