Large companies ramp up climate investments in Germany – survey
Clean Energy Wire
Businesses in Germany invested 85 billion euros in measures to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions in 2023, a 12 percent increase over the previous year, shows a survey conducted by government-owned banking institution KfW among almost 10,000 companies. Adjusted for inflation, the increase was five percent. Large companies were the main drivers and ramped up inflation-adjusted investments by 19 percent to 50 billion euros, KfW said. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), meanwhile, invested ten percent less – i.e. 35 billion euros – in climate solutions.
The main focuses of climate investments in 2023 were electric mobility and the corresponding charging infrastructure, followed by measures aimed at the generation or storage of electricity and heat from renewables and improvements to the energy efficiency of existing buildings, KfW said.
However, “the difficult economic situation is weighing on many companies and reduces their scope for investing in climate protection,” said KfW CEO Stefan Wintels. Germany needed reliable framework conditions and in particular more offers to support SMEs on the path to climate neutrality, he added. Key reasons keeping enterprises from investing in emissions reduction include uncertainty regarding the cost-effectiveness of climate investments (47%), followed by the lack of financial resources (37%) and lengthy planning and approval procedures (36%).
A separate survey by the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) and the German Chambers of Commerce Abroad (AHKs) showed that a majority of German companies with activities abroad (86% of respondents) see various business opportunities in climate protection, the energy transition and the mobility transition in other countries. Energy generation from renewable sources and energy efficiency in industry are seen as the most promising areas.
Germany's industry is going through a difficult period that has let economic growth in the country stagnate and led to worries over looming de-industrialisation. While most companies agree that having reliable climate and energy transition strategies is financially rewarding in the long run, many currently struggle with high energy costs, bureaucratic hurdles and political uncertainty when it comes to implementing changes.
