Germany’s coalition leaders faced tough questions after a key Berlin meeting, where major decisions on energy policy, industrial electricity prices, power plant strategies, and the aviation tax were announced. The coalition aims to strengthen the economy, secure jobs, and enhance Germany’s industrial competitiveness, but industry experts and opposition parties are pressing for clarity on implementation and costs.
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00:00so you're talking about them yes exactly
00:10good evening and a warm welcome to the press conference after or during today's coalition
00:21committee meeting with the party chairman of the cdu csu and spd and since we have little time
00:26let's get going mister yeah thank you very much yes ladies and gentlemen we are meeting in the
00:32reichstag today with the coalition committee for a very simple reason there are a number of roll
00:36call votes today which we as members of the german bundestag also want to attend and there are votes
00:42on decisions that we have already made in the coalition committee including the reduction in
00:46electricity tax and of course we want to have a say in those today dot that's why we are here
00:53we have discussed and decided on a number of other projects in the coalition committee
00:59and i would like to emphasize above all that we are aware of the situation our economy is in and
01:07that we want to strengthen the conditions for our country's competitiveness again
01:10and that is why energy policy was at the forefront today and in particular two resolutions firstly we
01:19want to introduce an industrial electricity price for the years 2026 to 2028 the target price should
01:26be around five cents per kilowatt hour and support companies that consume a lot of electricity and
01:31are in international competition the talks with the commission have largely been completed and we
01:37assume that we will also receive approval for this this also applies to a power plant strategy
01:43we want to ensure that germany's electricity demand is also covered when wind and solar power are not
01:50available this means that we will also build power plants in germany that can fill these gaps
02:00and this strategy this power plant strategy means that we will put out to tender plants at short notice
02:06that can help keep our power supply systems stable around the clock and at all times of the year
02:11we are creating the basis for the development of new power plant capacities specifically a total of
02:18eight gigawatts of new controllable capacities for security of supply are to be put out to tender as
02:23early as 2026 i.e next year and these capacities will be put into operation by 2031. our goal here too is
02:32to conclude the talks with the eu commission as quickly as possible and reach a legally secure agreement
02:37all the signals we are hearing from brussels indicate that we can expect this these gff gas
02:44fired power plants in the power plant strategy will be put out to tender in such a way that they are
02:50technically capable of also using hydrogen and that they can be decarbonized in line with the climate
02:55targets by 2045 at the latest in a technology neutral manner with the power plant strategy and the
03:01industrial electricity price this government's energy policy will receive two additional crucial
03:07components we are not forgetting the overarching goal it is all about significantly relieving the
03:13burden on our economy and reducing production costs we have already done that in the past six months
03:19we have abolished the gas storage surcharge we have reduced the electricity tax the decision will be
03:24made tonight we will reduce the grid fees we have created the possibility of using ccs technology
03:30and today we are adding the industrial electricity price and the power plant strategy we have agreed
03:36on the germany fund in the coalition committee this germany fund is an umbrella fund under which various
03:43other funds are also set up the germany fund is intended to mobilize capital to mobilize private capital
03:50with public funds this is used to finance investments the federal minister of finance and vice chancellor will
03:57explain this in more detail in a moment after all we talked about the aviation industry on the 1st of
04:06july we will reverse the increase in the aviation tax that was implemented in 2024 on the 1st of july we will
04:16also reverse the tax increase or the increase in the tax that was decided at that time in the amount of
04:21around 350 million euros in favor of the aviation industry in germany if this results in tax losses
04:29the net losses will be booked in budget section 12 we assume that we will be able to generate this
04:35without any problems above all we want to ensure that the aviation industry in germany grows again that
04:42it achieves an upswing we are the only country in europe and beyond if i understand correctly that has not
04:49yet returned to the traffic figures we had before corona we want to get there and strengthen this
04:54important industry for ourselves yes ladies and gentlemen a strong germany needs a strong economy
05:00and secure well-paid jobs we are continuously working on strengthening our competitiveness we
05:06always have the central goal in mind our economy must get going again must run better we have already
05:11made a lot of progress towards this let me mention again the special fund and the investment opportunities
05:17that arise from it we are not losing sight of this goal on the contrary we are working very hard to
05:25continue pursuing this goal and we are confident that we will see the results in the coming weeks and
05:30months we are firmly convinced that the resolutions we have passed today the decisions that will be made
05:36today in the german bundestag and the resolutions we have made in the coalition committee will also
05:40contribute to this thank you very much ms ba ladies and gentlemen i am very pleased that we have reached
05:49so many resolutions today because as you know we have been working very closely with industry in recent
05:56weeks i would like to remind you that we have spoken at the automotive summit and the steel summit
06:01but also with many other sectors there is great uncertainty about securing jobs especially industrial jobs
06:08in this country and that is why it was important that we make these decisions quickly now so that we
06:13can also reduce energy costs overall that provides security and as the spd but i must say as minister of
06:21labor we have been very committed to ensuring that we can now send this message because we have kept our word
06:30we promised the industries that we would act quickly now and that is why it was important to me that we
06:35make this energy policy decision now incidentally the part for the aviation industry too that is
06:43important that secures jobs and provides security and we need that now in this situation so that we can
06:50also make progress in this country and that's why i'm very glad that we were able to do that today
06:55that we are now sending signals to the people and employees
06:58at the same time i would also like to appeal to companies to use this decision to provide location
07:06security and job security
07:11for me this is a very important step and this decision also shows that we can also reach a
07:16decision in the democratic center
07:20and i think it's also important today that we have made it clear to ourselves that we share responsibility
07:26for this country as democratic parties and we are showing that we can find compromises
07:34even if we occasionally argue occasionally we'll have another hour no not today
07:42and in that respect it was simply important to say that we are working on it and above all we have now
07:48kept our word also to the steel industry and automotive industry suppliers that was a major concern
07:54we will continue to advocate for this at the european level with regard to the industrial electricity
08:00price and also the options that we still need to work out together and we have done our homework
08:05on this point i want to make that clear and i am glad that the people who keep this country going
08:12every day now also have a message that we have understood and that we will implement the measures that
08:17we are also passing in the bundestag today i believe over 20 laws in the second and third reading
08:23that is also a message there is little reporting about it but i want to say it once and for all
08:29there are many elements in it that are also very very important in addition to it the federal chancellor
08:35has just mentioned the grid fees and so on these are many things that now have to take effect and i am
08:41sure that you will do so thank you very much dr soter economy first that is the clear decision that we have
08:49made in addition to the issue of migration where we as a coalition have already made great progress
08:55the challenge of economic policy is the greatest and most crucial for our people and it is not only
09:00an economic challenge but ultimately probably also a democratic one the german economy is still under
09:06extreme pressure tariffs china and the risk of deindustrialization we are working hard to counteract this
09:14our clear goal is to strengthen the economy enable investment in germany and create competitiveness
09:21that is why we have decided on the next stage today it will not be the last but it is an important one
09:26the following points have already been addressed energy prices are a real disadvantage for germany
09:31as a location even in a european comparison an improvement is now being achieved in this regard
09:37the industrial electricity price is a response that particularly affects sectors such as chemicals
09:42glass ceramics and also mechanical engineering this will improve the competitiveness of german industry
09:49that is why this is very very important we have already passed a number of resolutions now the next
09:54addition the second is the power plant strategy the power plant strategy with a final target of 10
10:00gigawatts which we want to achieve and which will be subject to a tendering process starting on 26th
10:05is of fundamental importance for germany because the expansion of the neuerbahn requires gas power in
10:10order to balance out the wind at night and in other areas and to have a reliable energy supply
10:17grid stability and price stability and what is particularly important this applies in particular
10:22to the industrially very strong south of baden-württemberg and bavaria in terms of grid technology
10:27northern westphalia also belongs to the south of germany
10:33so that in the long term more and better energy can be organized
10:37it is urgently needed but also crucial i think it is a very strong decision that we have managed to
10:44reach an agreement today to eliminate the air traffic tax
10:49it was introduced many years ago to balance the budget but has not met the budgetary targets
10:55and on the other hand has gradually reduced air traffic in germany
10:59there are always concerns and complaints regional connections are being dismantled
11:04regional slots are being eliminated and cost pressures are enormous this is now a clear
11:09signal that flying in germany is competitive and is extremely important especially for domestic flights
11:15in germany this will finally make the providers which is primarily a major provider in germany
11:22more competitive that is why it is an important signal i would like to point out that this
11:27coalition is abolishing or reducing attacks that is also a very very important signal the german
11:33proposal will certainly be presented much better by the finance minister that is why i think it is good
11:38because it allows us to invest a lot of money with little money to support startups and medium-sized
11:43businesses but it is also intended to deliberately offset our raw material deficits the raw material
11:49deficits in the world through individual projects by the way we will continue later we will continue
11:56after the roll call votes that is why the principle applies according to the coalition agreement before the
12:02next one today and then in the coming weeks we must continue working flat out and at full speed
12:07everyone in the business world is talking about china speed we in europe are too slow for this pace
12:13we are now trying to pick up the pace in germany to develop new power and that is why i believe it is
12:19absolutely essential that we continue at this pace the bundestag makes one decision after the other
12:24nothing is left undone everything is processed despite some of the differences that we have
12:29there are ultimately very efficient solutions which is why i have to say that it was a well-prepared
12:34day and we will certainly discuss a number of things in advance in the evening so that we do
12:38not have to spend endless hours late into the night making decisions in the next coalition agreement
12:43but rather make them quickly and in good times so that they can be implemented soon
12:47many thanks again to everyone see you soon mr clingball yes i too wish you a very good evening and i
12:52have to tell you that i am very satisfied with today we started with an agreement this morning
12:57we had the parliamentary group meeting today on the workload where i am very grateful that a good
13:03solution was found i am very confident that we will emerge from this night with a good decision
13:08once the budget committee has approved the budget and we have finalized budget 26. today tomorrow and
13:14also on wednesday we have already had over 20 second and third readings taking place here in the german
13:20bundestag and in a very short space of time we have now made important decisions in the coalition
13:26committee on economic strength and on securing and creating jobs in our country and that means we
13:31are doing our homework as a government we are doing our homework as a coalition we are making decisions
13:36and we are delivering that is the aspiration and that is the speed with which we should make decisions
13:41for our country we promised the people that we would make decisions we would find solutions we want
13:46progress instead of blockades and we are fulfilling precisely this mission today's coalition committee
13:52meeting shows that i would like to mention a few more important points that have already been mentioned
13:57but which are also of particular significance to me namely that after such a long time we have finally
14:03agreed on the germany fund and are getting it underway katerina reich and i will present it in more
14:10detail in the coming days but it is an important instrument for strengthening germany economically
14:16it is also an important instrument for strengthening our resilience for example when it comes to the
14:21question of how we can become more independent in terms of raw materials and above all it is about
14:27sending a clear signal to private investment in addition to the public investments that we have
14:32initiated with 500 billion we are creating a hub for private capital in the areas of energy
14:39in the areas of resilience in the areas of the economic strength of this country and also for
14:44startups in the area of security policy so here we have succeeded in something that we have been
14:49working on for a long time this was never a major point of conflict but it still required preliminary
14:54work and we have now broken this deadlock the second issue is the industrial electricity price but this
14:59debate has been going on for a long time and we have now managed to resolve it we are ensuring that
15:04there are low energy prices for industry that was also a clear signal at the automotive dialogue
15:10that was a clear signal at the steel summit and we also agreed that we would jointly push in brussels
15:15for the industrial electricity price and the electricity price compensation which we have
15:20already initiated and are currently working to expand to ensure that both instruments work together
15:26that would also be an important signal for the steel industry for example the third point which you
15:30will read in the resolution text in a moment was agreed again that was not a point of contention
15:35either but it was important that we state it as the german federal government we want to put pressure
15:40on the capital markets union together with our partners in france to ensure that we finally have
15:45a unified capital market in europe this is an incredible economic force that we can develop if
15:50we have a unified capital market important decisions are pending for example on securitization or the 28th
15:57regime and germany and france will play a key role in this the federal chancellor will exert this
16:02pressure but also the specialist ministers and i as finance minister will do so from within the
16:07government and i would also like to say something about the aviation industry it was a common concern
16:12of ours to find a solution here we have clarified how we can finance the whole thing from budget section
16:1712 but the important signal to send to employees in the aviation industry is that we can see that
16:22jobs are at risk here and that we as the federal government are working to find a solution and we
16:27have now done so in a very short space of time a very important signal ladies and gentlemen i would
16:33simply like to state once again that i believe that all the problems and challenges we face in this
16:38country can be solved the good thing is that if you talk about them if you have the will and the
16:42intention to find a solution then you can achieve it we are seeing that in the government these days
16:47that we are succeeding in doing so and i would like to emphasize that again all the reasons why we
16:53as social democrats joined this government in may still apply germany finds itself in a difficult
16:58foreign policy environment in a difficult european policy environment we have economic
17:03challenges in this country and we as a government that is firmly anchored in the democratic center of
17:08this country want to solve them we are doing this for our country for the people in our country and
17:13today we have made a good decision to do so i am very happy and very grateful and believe that this
17:18sends a very important signal for our country thank you very much in view of the upcoming decisions
17:23we only have very little time for questions mr rinker spoke first i have a question for you regarding
17:33the energy transition have you also discussed whether the expansion is even sufficient there are
17:40warnings that given the great demand for data centers and other specific requirements the energy
17:45demand in the usa will increase much more has this also been discussed and a supplementary question
17:53because today in europe a decision was made on extreme unity of purpose but in the european
17:58parliament a decision to defuse the limping directive was only reached by the op with
18:03right-wing extremist parties and not with the center parties is that a way perhaps i would like to first
18:12comment on the last question to rinky um i already did so this morning i regret that three weeks ago there
18:18was no agreement in the european parliament on these issues today's decision is not the final decision
18:25that has to be made on this the european parliament now has a position with this the parliament and the
18:30commission will now enter into the so-called trilogue there will be a compromise and in the end the
18:36european parliament will have to give its approval and i assume that in this final vote on this issue
18:44on the supply chain directive the majority in the european parliament will be achieved which i would
18:49always like to see namely a majority of the ep the social democratic groups and uh the liberals
18:58that could have been the case three weeks ago today it was different but once again i assume that next
19:05time there will be a stable majority in the center of the european parliament again
19:11incidentally the far-right group would not have been needed for this vote today
19:18the figures were clear there was a majority with the edr group together with the ep and parts of the
19:23liberals that was enough for a very very broad majority in the european parliament and that is now
19:30the starting point for the talks that are taking place and then in my firm conviction and
19:34hope there will be a vote in the european parliament again with the so-called platform that was formed
19:40there as for the first topic can you quickly tell me the key word again whether the energy demand
19:48the energy demand yes excuse me the energy demand was calculated by the federal ministry
19:54for economic affairs there was a demand analysis and also a report on security of supply
19:59um we assume that with the increase that has now been discussed with the eu commission
20:06namely an increase of around 8 to 10 gigawatts of power sufficient reserve capacities can be created
20:12to actually overcome such dark periods the most important goal is to create lasting security of
20:19supply even when the sun is not shining and the wind is not blowing in germany and this needs analysis
20:24formed the basis for the discussions with the commission and the figures that i have mentioned
20:29are the figures that the commission has also indicated as eligible for approval mr fisher
20:38i just wanted to say or at least i do because i am also responsible for supply chains
20:43so i consider it a fatal sign that manfred weber as ep leader deliberately did not seek a compromise in
20:49the democratic center well he did seek it but today he deliberately decided not to implement it and
20:56um for the spd this is already a fatal sign because i can only say and i would also support the federal
21:03chancellor that we have to get back to the center of the democratic parties and also to the democratic
21:08family that's why i emphasized it so much earlier for me it is important that the future of europe should
21:14not be shaped by right-wing extremist forces and um in that respect i hope that the further process
21:21finds its way back to the democratic center um otherwise um as i said the signal that emanated
21:27from europe today is a fatal sign for me personally mr fisher the federal chancellor you will continue
21:33speaking in a moment can you imagine that you will also reach an agreement on the combustion engine
21:38house this evening and will you address the issue of the pension package or would you rather wait and see
21:43like deutschland jung no we are talking about both topics and my answer is twofold yes
21:52mr schmi then i will follow up on that and ask the vice chancellor and the minister the technological
21:58openness that the federal chancellor and the prime minister are demanding with regard to internal
22:02combustion engines i.e that genuine purebred internal combustion engines let's say no hybrids so to
22:08speak are watered down by this internal combustion engine would the spd go along with what soda and
22:14the federal chancellor want well first of all i want to make it clear to you and this has also been the
22:19subject of very good discussions that we have had so far also in this circle within the federal
22:23government we see the situation in the german automotive industry and we know that we have to do
22:27something about it and i think everyone knows that we now have to find a compromise and for the spd we
22:32have always made it clear that we are prepared for more flexibility we are prepared to put more
22:36technology options on the table we have made this very clear on the issue of range extenders
22:41plug-in hybrids and also on the issue of blending so we will continue to discuss this in the coalition
22:48we are determined that there will be a unified position with which the federal chancellor will
22:53then also have an impact in brussels and germany will play a key role in this
22:58and i would also like to tell you that we are aware that we now have to reach a decision
23:03and in the good spirit in which we have now reached a decision we will continue to talk here
23:07also this evening as the federal chancellor said we have now reached a decision and it was important
23:13to us that we reach a decision quickly but now we still have a nice evening ahead of us and we'll
23:18talk about one or two more topics the four of us don't see each other that often so let's make the
23:23most of the time the gentleman behind the second camera whom i can't quite make out
23:29janner mini group mr cling what costs do you calculate for the industrial electricity price
23:35and how large is the group of companies that can benefit from it
23:40and mr federal chancellor do you expect to agree on a joint position on combustion engines this evening
23:47regarding the industrial electricity price we are now waiting for the final details from brussels
23:52we assume that it will cost between three and five billion we will finance this from the ktf we are
23:58also waiting to hear whether the electricity price cap can be extended but that is roughly
24:03the margin we are operating within we have budgeted for the money because the industrial electricity
24:08price is also set out in the coalition agreement and is also set out as a priority measure and now
24:13we need the final go ahead but i can already say that i was in brussels myself yesterday ms reich was
24:18in brussels yesterday the federal chancellor held talks and all signals are green so that we can now
24:24implement the whole thing by the first of january 2026 many thanks again yes and that was a good
24:32closing statement with a view to the roll call vote we will end this here many thanks for your interest
24:37have a nice evening thank you very much so let's just do it is that the case yes
25:07m
25:24m
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