Chemical industry celebrates “good year” but warns of rising energy prices

The chemical industry has had “a good year without limitations” in 2017 but says that further increases in energy prices continue to pose a risk for Germany’s third largest industry branch, the German Chemical Industry Association (VCI) says in a press release. The industry has seen “major sales growth” of five percent, “significant production increases”, the highest employment level in over a decade and expectations of “further growth” in 2018. But the VCI warns that the difficult formation of a new government coalition jeopardises the industry’s business prospects and high energy prices put supply security at risk. “Therefore, the VCI opposes a national CO₂ tax or an overly hasty end of coal-based electricity,” the press release says.

Read the press release in English here.

See the CLEW dossier Energiewende effects on power prices, costs and industry and the CLEW factsheet What business thinks of the energy transition for background.