Closing of wind turbine plant in eastern Germany raises questions about coal region鈥檚 future
威力彩玩法 / rbb
Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas has the closure of a blade factory in eastern German state Brandenburg. The company is axeing over 450 jobs in the town of Lauchhammer and is also shutting down two other production sites in Spain and Denmark 鈥渁s demand for these modules will gradually shift to markets primarily outside of Europe and be delivered via more localised manufacturing facilities鈥�. The decision is raising questions about the prospects for Germany as a lead market and driver for the key energy transition technology, Andreas Rausch for local public broadcaster rbb. 鈥淭his is a devastating signal for the entire region,鈥� he argues, adding that the end of coal power in the eastern region Lusatia in 2038 at the latest is already taxing for local economies. 鈥淲hile the debate about a faster coal exit is getting louder, there are no jobs to replace it in sight,鈥� Rausch writes, even though the government has earmarked billions of euros to fund the transition. But the closing of the factory also casts a doubt on the speed of wind power expansion, which has slowed significantly in Germany since 2017 but needs to rebound fast to meet renewable energy goals for 2030, he adds. The parting of Vestas is a 鈥渃atastrophe鈥� for the economy of the small town that celebrated the factory鈥檚 opening in 2002 after years of deindustrialisation after the collapse of communist eastern Germany, Lauchhammer鈥檚 deputy mayor J枚rg Rother rbb. Brandenburg鈥檚 economy minister J枚rg Steinbach said the decision was questionable, as demand for wind turbines is set to go up again. He said he is in contact with Vestas to negotiate whether the decision can be 鈥渕odified鈥�.
NGO Environmental Action Germany (DUH) said political framework conditions were directly to blame for the closure. Conservative politicians like Brandenburg鈥檚 CDU top candidate Jens Koeppen or CDU chancellor candidate Armin Laschet have always advocated for tighter minimum distance rules for wind turbines. The coal region would now lose jobs in 鈥渁n industry of the future鈥� while billions of euros are spent on coal company compensation. 鈥淭his amounts to a veritable economic policy failure of conservative opponents of the energy transition,鈥� DUH鈥檚 Sascha M眉ller-Kraenner said.
Wind power is Germany鈥檚 most important renewable power source and must grow up to four times faster than in recent years to allow Germany to phase-out nuclear and fossil power capacity. A key goal of the government in the coal exit is to support the economically weak eastern German coal regions in replacing lost jobs in coal new ones emerging in renewable power production.
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