Environmental and Climate Protection Minister Carsten Schneider of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) has defended the Green Steel Strategy of the German Federal Government, stating, “Without green steel, we will miss our climate goals.”
Schneider emphasized the economic benefits of climate-neutral steel production, saying, “We need green steel not only to meet our climate targets but also to secure the economic performance of our country. Therefore, we will have to strengthen the demand for our green steel through targeted procurement.”
The minister sharply criticized the announcement by the steel company ArcelorMittal, which has decided not to make its production in Bremen and Eisenhüttenstadt climate-neutral. “In the case of ArcelorMittal, we are dealing with a very large, globally active company that plays its locations off against each other.”
The federal government and the state of Bremen have mobilized a significant amount of funding, 1.3 billion euros, for the project. “The decision not to accept this support and thereby also to reject the German location is, in my opinion, not justifiable.” The employees of the company also have a right to expect their employer to keep its promises, as the decision puts the jobs at the location at risk, Schneider said.
At the same time, the minister called for calm, stating, “We must not let ourselves be too easily led astray by a very large, business-savvy company.” There is no alternative to green steel and ArcelorMittal knows this as well. Three other German steel companies are investing in the new technologies in the region.
The minister intends to stick to the strategy of maintaining a domestic steel industry in Germany, saying, “As the world’s third-largest industrial nation, we need a domestic steel industry in Germany, also to protect ourselves from the turbulence on the global market.” A first step could be a steel summit, which has also been discussed by Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil of the SPD.