German wind power manufacturers lay off workers despite booming industry

More and more electricity around the world will be generated with wind power turbines but Germany’s large manufacturers continue to lay off workers at home and abroad, Dow Jones Newswires reports. Senvion, Nordex, Enercon, and Siemens-Gamesa are among the companies reducing staff, “also due to political requirements”, the article says. Labour union IG Metall Küste says up to 2,000 jobs have been lost in the industry in Germany in 2017. Demand for wind turbines is generally on the rise around the world but stock prices of the German companies have plummeted in recent months. Difficult market access in booming China, a more hostile business environment for renewables in the US, and the shift to auctions in Germany all contribute to the manufacturers’ malaise, Dow Jones Newswires says.
IG Metall Küste adds that the expansion caps for renewable energy in Germany had to be removed. Regional union head Meinhard Gelken said the “stop-and-go” in Germany’s Energiewende policy over the last years had to stop in order “not to risk the energy transition’s chances”.

Read the IG Metall Küste press release in German here. 

Find background in the article Booming German wind power sector fears 2019 cliff, and the factsheet From survey to harvest: How to build a wind farm in Germany.