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SKW Piesteritz: Germany's largest nitrogen and ammonia producer
Photo: Sebastian Willnow / dpa
The Federal Ministry of Economics currently sees no shortage in the production of the diesel exhaust gas cleaner AdBlue.
If it really should come to that, you will react, said a spokesman for the ministry.
He was reacting to warnings from the Federal Association of Goods Transport and Logistics (BGL), which warned of an emergency in the supply of the substance that is important for trucks.
A spokesman for the chemical company SKW Piesteritz had previously said: »We are running dry.
As we no longer produce anything, our warehouses are empty.« The company from Lutherstadt Wittenberg, together with BASF and Yara, is one of the largest manufacturers of AdBlue in Germany.
Hardly any truck drives without the exhaust gas cleaner, and the substance is also used in many diesel cars to clean the exhaust gases.
However, due to the drastically increased gas prices, production at SKW Piesteritz has been completely idle for two to three weeks, and it is no longer economical for the company.
“No AdBlue means no trucks.
And that means no supply for Germany,” BGL general manager Dirk Engelhardt told the “Bild” newspaper, also referring to the production standstill at SKW.
The first bottlenecks in retail could occur in as little as two weeks.
SKW Piesteritz has agreed an emergency reserve with the BGL.
From this, however, only around one million liters of AdBlue were left, as the SKW spokesman told Reuters.
According to the group, logistics in Germany requires 2.5 million liters of AdBlue per day, all cars alone five million liters per day.
Ministry: Several manufacturers, possibility of imports
The group relies on gas, it is a basic raw material in production and therefore cannot be replaced.
SKW needs 14 terawatt hours of gas every year, so the sharp rise in prices has hit the company hard.
In addition, the group will probably have to pay a gas surcharge of EUR 30 million per month.
That cannot be done financially.
The spokesman said that SKW is actually a "healthy" company.
The Federal Ministry of Economics pointed out that the situation had been carefully monitored for a long time and that the manufacturer was in contact.
Regarding the supply situation, the spokesman said that there were several manufacturers in Germany and that there was also the possibility of imports.
“We couldn't find a real shortage.
But if this should happen, we will take measures.« He referred to the support instruments with which the government wants to ensure that companies have sufficient liquidity.
These would also be expanded.
SKW Piesteritz had previously called for a gas price cap and an exception to the gas levy for companies that use gas as a raw material.
"If nothing happens, we'll have to register short-time work for October 1," says the spokesman.
SKW Piesteritz employs 850 people, most of them in production.
mamk/Reuters