The citizens have to save, the Senate wants to save – now the economy too. All associations and chambers of Berlin’s economy agreed with the state of Berlin on the charter “Economy saves energy”, which was presented on Monday in the Red City Hall by the Governing Mayor Franziska Giffey (SPD), Economic Senator Stephan Schwarz (independent, for SPD) and the officially signed by representatives of the individual chambers and associations.
It is a “voluntary commitment,” said Giffey, to save “ten percent plus X” in energy for the entire Berlin economy.
“We rely on offers instead of bans,” emphasized Giffey. One does not want to force the companies from above with a “measure” that must apply to everyone, but rather rely on the flexibility of the individual companies to save wherever it makes sense. Because the level is already very high.
While other federal states asserted that they “wanted to save up to 20 percent”, Berlin is aiming for at least ten percent. “More is always possible,” said the government. Economic Senator Schwarz added: “Berlin already has the lowest per capita energy consumption and the highest energy productivity of all federal states.”
So that the savings targets can be achieved, the “Berlin Energy Saving Alliance” presents concrete steps how companies can reduce their consumption: for example, from lowering the room temperature to the permissible minimum value, to replacing light bulbs, to replacing old devices and machines with energy-efficiency and much more.
Similar to the Ukraine help, there is a website that is linked to the portal berlin.de and “should communicate widely,” said Giffey.
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The President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK), Sebastian Stietzel, pointed out that companies and businesses have been saving energy for many months and have not just started to do so. “But even if a company uses 100 percent green electricity, it has to reckon with a 17-fold increase in the electricity price,” he said.
Stefan Moschko, President of the Business Associations (UVB), appealed to politicians to make “quick solutions now” possible and not to waste too much time on approval processes. For example, when a company is “making the switch from gas to oil”.
To find out how a company can save energy even better, the state of Berlin has created “Energy Scouts”, i.e. consultants who use their expertise to offer quick solutions and which companies can make use of.
Schwarz also referred to the KEK – the coordination office for energy efficiency and climate protection. It has existed since March of this year and serves as an “initial consultation”. From September 1st, Berlin companies can also submit applications for the “Solar Plus” subsidy program for solar expansion to the IBB development bank. The budget: 6.9 million euros. “I think that’s pretty neat,” said Schwarz.
Chamber of Commerce President Carola Zarth called the rising energy prices “a curse and a blessing at the same time”. On the one hand, the extreme prices could only be partially passed on to customers and many would have to fear for their existence.
On the other hand, they meant that companies were more likely to exchange an old oven for an energy-efficient one or opt for a solar system. “But the solar system has to be installed. And many companies are canceling orders because they no longer have specialists who could do it.”
However, handicraft businesses have also been saving energy quite pragmatically for a long time. For example, bakeries that voluntarily “bake more tin bread than round bread because it costs less energy,” said Zarth.
But why aren’t these savings options made mandatory for the economy? Here Franziska Giffey took the floor: “I don’t want to live in a world where there are only tin breads”. After all, customers still want round bread, added Carola Zarth.
