Klimaschutz und Wirtschaft: Ifo: Niedriger CO2-Preis bremst Investitionen fürs Klima

A recent Ifo survey suggests that German industrial companies would invest more in climate-friendly technologies if the CO2 price were higher and more predictable. "For many companies, predictable CO2 prices are what determines whether a new, climate-friendly facility is profitable," notes Ifo researcher Mathias Dolls. "On average, companies only invest when the price remains constant above 90 euros per tonne of CO2.

When price fluctuations are too high, they do not invest." At a low CO2 price of around 50 euros, surveyed firms collectively rejected climate protection projects, according to the Ifo study of 830 industrial companies. If the expected CO2 price rises to 175 euros, the decision clearly favors climate-friendly investments. "Currently, European emissions trading prices are around 70 to 90 euros, close to the threshold at which an average German industrial company begins to invest climate-friendly, but a large part is still likely to hesitate," says Ifo researcher Gerome Wolf.

The study indicates that price fluctuations play a central role in investment decisions, alongside the CO2 price level. If companies anticipate high fluctuations, they wait and do not invest even at a high average price, the Ifo found. Robust political conditions are thus crucial. The EU's emissions trading system, the bloc's main climate protection instrument, is at the center of intense debates.

Industries such as chemicals press for relaxations, while some steel companies like Salzgitter, already beginning to adjust their production, warn of moving backward. The European Commission proposed a weakening of the emissions trading in July, aiming for a slower reduction of the total number of available rights for emitting climate-damaging gases and more free certificates in certain sectors.

German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche (CDU) pushes for a relief for industry. "The reform of the EU emissions trading must now be designed in a way that we can keep industrial production and energy-intensive businesses in Germany in the long term," she recently told Deutsche Presse-Agentur.