PRESS STATEMENT Industrial Accelerator Act: Good Approaches, but Clear Corrections Needed

“The Industrial Accelerator Act is finally on the table. Despite resistance from parts of the federal government, the draft contains good ideas: It is both right and necessary to introduce mandatory local content regulations for strategic sectors, particularly in procurement and funding. In particular, we welcome the fact that, following recent debates, steel has finally been designated as an energy-intensive and strategic sector—though unfortunately only with regard to sustainability requirements and not the location of production. This is a misguided approach to industrial policy and completely incomprehensible. It must be corrected! Chancellor Merz took a clear stance on this at the Steel Summit. We take him at his word.

We welcome the European content requirements in the automotive industry regarding the procurement and promotion of electrified vehicles, including the proportion of components manufactured in Europe and requirements for batteries. This can provide important impetus for European value creation and employment in the automotive and supplier industries.

However, the list of strategic sectors is, on the whole, erratic and lacks a clear direction. For example, so-called “industries of the future,” such as semiconductors or quantum computing, are no longer included. We call for a broad approach to incorporating additional strategically relevant sectors.

The effectiveness of the regulations is significantly limited by the fact that suppliers from all countries with which free trade agreements have been concluded or with which a customs agreement exists are treated in the same way as those from member states. Ultimately, this amounts to nothing more than “Buy not China” rather than manufacturing within the EU. This is clearly insufficient.

The fact that this regulation is not set to take effect until 2029 is far too late and incomprehensible to us. The priority now is to further improve this proposal so that industry in Germany and Europe truly benefits from it and jobs are secured. The federal government must get its act together and step up its efforts in this regard.”

Further information and press photos of Jürgen Kerner