Michael Müller, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), has emphasised the importance of a sustainable energy supply for industry. Speaking at a conference on the aluminium industry organised by the trade union IG Metall, Müller reaffirmed that Germany intends to maintain its leading role in climate protection. "The global challenges facing the energy sector require strategic solutions. A key priority, in this context, is to improve energy efficiency on the production and demand side. The same applies to renewables, whose role must continue to expand," said Müller.
Michael Müller also talked about the electricity price hikes: "Internationally competitive electricity and gas prices are essential for Germany's export-oriented industry; this applies especially to the aluminium industry. But the price rises are becoming an increasing burden on private households as well." In his view, fully implementing the EU directives but also removing barriers are important for competition to function effectively and thus facilitate grid and market access for new competitors.
"If we compare electricity price trends and the profits achieved by the four major energy suppliers, we see that both have risen sharply over the last few years. We would be closing our eyes to reality if we did not describe this as market abuse," said Michael Müller. Unless the regulatory authority can guarantee more competition, more far-reaching measures will become necessary.
"Extending the nuclear power stations' operating time will not provide a solution to the cost problem. Nuclear power has relatively little influence on price formation on the electricity exchange. What longer operating times will do, however, is to push up the companies' profits even further. Nuclear energy is not sustainable, and it is not needed for Germany's long-term energy supply security," said Michael Müller.