German steel industry calls for key measures in 2027 federal budget

Germany’s steel industry has called on the federal government to use the 2027 budget to strengthen industrial competitiveness and provide reliable financial support for the sector’s transition towards climate-neutral production.

The appeal from Wirtschaftsvereinigung Stahl (WV Stahl) comes as the government submits its draft federal budget for 2027 to the Bundestag. The association argues that industrial and climate policy commitments need to be backed by adequate funding, particularly through Germany’s Climate and Transformation Fund.

Three priorities for the steel industry

WV Stahl identified three areas it considers particularly important: lower energy prices, lead markets for low-emission steel produced in the EU, and stronger transport and logistics infrastructure.

Kerstin Maria Rippel, Managing Director of WV Stahl, said maintaining a strong domestic basic-materials industry amid growing global economic pressures would require both targeted policy measures and reliable financing.

She warned in particular against reversing recently introduced measures aimed at reducing energy costs.

“The subsidy for transmission grid costs must therefore not be reduced, but maintained in full and finally put on a permanent footing,” Rippel said.

For Germany’s energy-intensive steelmakers, electricity and grid costs have become a central competitiveness issue as companies prepare investments in lower-emission production. WV Stahl is therefore calling for the 2027 budget to provide longer-term certainty rather than temporary relief.

Source and Photo: WV Stahl