Economy in Krefeld
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Companies need faster access to funding
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Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst, Minister Andreas Pinkwart and IHK boss Jürgen Steinmetz.
Photo: IHK
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Krefeld IHK General Manager Jürgen Steinmetz discussed digitally with top politicians from the parties in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Faster and less bureaucratic access to funding for companies, control of structural change projects with a view to jobs and training positions, as well as value creation and security of supply at competitive prices – Jürgen Steinmetz formulated these three core demands at the online forum “Future of Industry in the Rhenish Revier”. The general manager of the Middle Lower Rhine Chamber of Industry and Commerce (IHK) attended together with NRW Prime Minister Hendrik Wüst, Thomas Kutschaty (Chairman of the SPD NRW), Mona Neubaur (Chairwoman of Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen NRW), NRW Economics Minister Professor Dr. Andreas Pinkwart (FDP) and Environment Minister Ursula Heinen-Esser (CDU) took part in the digital discussion. The IHK Aachen, Cologne and the Middle Lower Rhine had invited to the online forum together with the industrial union for mining, chemistry and energy (IG BCE).
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“We will be able to successfully shape the structural change if jobs that are lost are replaced, jobs in energy-intensive industry are secured and new jobs are created in future-oriented sectors – only companies can do that,” says Steinmetz. “Unfortunately, we see that the promotion of companies, for example within the framework of structural promotion, is proving difficult in practice.” That urgently needs to be simplified. “Companies are in the starting blocks.”
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According to Steinmetz, a federal investment funding guideline for structural change in the coal regions and a less strict interpretation of European state aid law, for example through a special economic zone, could contribute to accelerating direct business funding.
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Steinmetz also warns that, despite all the funding that has been promised, the industry is above all dependent on a reliable energy supply at competitive prices: “Politicians must set the right framework conditions for this and implement effective measures to protect against carbon leakage.” According to Steinmetz, a reliable implementation plan is also urgently needed. “Companies have been waiting for a breakthrough in the shortening of planning and approval procedures announced by politicians for some time.” This is one of the crucial prerequisites for the structural change to be successful. “Time is of the essence,” appeals the head of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce.
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