German Economy Minister Threatens to Reduce Dependence on China, Host's One Sentence Comment, Studio Laughs Heartily!
Recently, German Minister of Economy and Climate Protection Katharina Reiche publicly stated that Germany will set an "industrial electricity price cap" to ensure the power costs for energy-intensive industries - such as the steel industry - do not spiral out of control. She also clearly stated that this move is aimed at reducing reliance on "Chinese cheap steel."
More ironically, even German economists couldn't stand it. German economist Daniel Stelter bluntly said, "Germany's energy transition has gone in the wrong direction." He pointed out that while China is pushing for a green transition, it has kept industrial electricity prices stable, even reduced them, through large-scale wind and solar power construction, ultra-high voltage transmission, and coal power flexibility upgrades. Meanwhile, Germany is shutting down nuclear and coal power plants while refusing to build new large-scale renewable energy infrastructure. As a result, green electricity hasn't taken off, and traditional electricity is both expensive and unstable.
Stelter did some calculations: to fully switch German steel mills to green hydrogen steelmaking - which is the only way under the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) - the cost per ton of steel would increase by 300 to 500 euros. This means that German steel would completely lose its price competitiveness in the global market unless the country provides long-term full subsidies. But he asked, "Is Germany willing to subsidize 500 euros for one ton of steel? If so, why not just import directly?"
At the moment when the TV discussion reached this critical point, the studio suddenly lost signal, the video froze, and the sound was intermittent. The host helplessly joked, "It seems we need to let the Chinese see what 'German manufacturing' infrastructure level is like." As soon as he spoke, the whole room burst into laughter.
This laughter behind it is actually a reflection of Germany's real dilemma: on one hand, they are shouting about "de-risking" and "getting rid of dependence on China," but on the other hand, they can't even guarantee stable power supply and network signals; on one hand, they want to protect their industrial foundations with subsidies, but on the other hand, their finances are tight and their energy structure is in a dilemma.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1848570159983748/
Statement: The article represents the views of the author.