Germany’s Companies to Focus on Climate Protection, but Pace Remains a Concern
According to a recent survey by the Ifo-Institute, German companies plan to allocate an average of 11% of their total investments for climate protection measures by 2025, a figure that has remained largely unchanged from the previous year.
Despite this, Ifo researcher Gerome Wolf emphasized the need to accelerate the pace of climate protection and mobilize necessary capital. The main drivers of climate protection efforts among companies are measures to increase energy efficiency, reduce their own CO2 emissions and expand the use of renewable energy.
While Germany is on track to meet its emissions targets set in the Federal Climate Protection Act, with goals of reducing emissions by 2030 and 2045, there is still a need for adjustments in the transportation and building sectors, Wolf noted.
A major obstacle to investment in climate protection, according to Wolf, is economic uncertainty surrounding subsidies, planning and approval procedures and carbon pricing mechanisms. He called for a reliable and targeted support, clear framework conditions and more international coordination to overcome these challenges.