BWE Industry Report - Wind Industry in Germany 2018

JOBS Record employment

JOBS Record employment – with a mixed outlook Wind energy has become a driver for the economy and employment. This benefits not only the less-favoured north of Germany but also the suppliers in the south. In 2016, more people were employed in the industry than ever before. In the course of the EEG reforms, however, there were also plant closures and job losses for the first time in 2017. At the end of 2016, the wind industry in Germany accounted for around 160,200 jobs in total, of which 133,000 were onshore and 27,200 offshore. This is specified in a report prepared for the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) in early 2017 by leading economic research institutes. With an overall increase of about 10 percent compared to 2015, the number of people employed in the wind industry was greater than ever before. As a result of the large number of new installations in 2016, the number of offshore installation workers increased by almost 25 percent, or just under 5,000. All in all, wind power now accounts for almost every second job in the field of renewable energy. By way of comparison, the aerospace industry in Germany accounts for, directly or indirectly, around 100,000 jobs. The proportion of jobs in maintenance and turbine operation continues to increase. In the onshore sector, the value increased by two percentage points to 26 percent. In the offshore wind industry, the rate remains high at 39 percent. 24 Wind Industry in Germany

Economic report | JOBS According to a study commissioned by wind energy industry associations in March 2016, the employment effects are distributed throughout Germany. This also applies to states that have installed only a few plants. The final manufacturing processes of turbine manufacturers take place predominantly in the north, but the supply industry has established itself everywhere, predominantly in North Rhine-Westphalia (18,490 employees in 2015), Bavaria (11,820) and Baden-Württemberg (9,490). This puts North Rhine- Westphalia in second place behind Lower Saxony (32,300). This led to the state government in Düsseldorf, despite initial reservations against a further expansion of wind power, to organise an initiative in the German Bundesrat in support of onshore wind. Tendering system costs jobs by Adwen in Bremerhaven is being discontinued by the company’s new owner, Siemens Gamesa. The group will lay off up to 6,000 of its 27,000 employees worldwide. Nordex also announced that it would be cutting up to 500 jobs. Offshore wind power was particularly affected in 2017, and the German government reduced its expansion target in this area from 25,000 to 15,000 MW. In the “Cuxhaven appeal”, the industry, IG Metall and state governments joined forces in demanding an increase of the target to at least 20,000 MW. This, they explained, was necessary not only because of climate change, but also to safeguard jobs. Industry associations and politicians now hope to counteract job losses, especially among manufacturers, by increasing the planned expansion of onshore and offshore wind energy. High share: With 39 percent the share of jobs in service and maintenance is constantly high in the offshore wind sector. According to the IG Metall union, in 2017 the employment situation throughout Germany began to look less favourable and future prospects worsened. This is primarily due to the switch from a subsidy system to a tendering system. A survey of works council members from 38 companies nationwide with 24,000 employees revealed that more than 40 percent of them expect a negative market trend, especially for manufacturers. The works councils expect job losses in just under a quarter of companies. “The situation in the wind industry is getting worse – faster and more noticeably than we had feared,” says Meinhard Geiken, District Manager at IG Metall Küste. “A year ago, there was no talk of redundancies and site closures, but now numerous companies are affected, in both the onshore and offshore sectors.” Up to 2,000 jobs are reported to have been lost in 2017. Plant manufacturer Senvion, for example, has closed its northern German locations in Husum and Trampe as well as its subsidiary Powerblades in Bremerhaven, which specialised in turbine blades. Wind turbine blade manufacturer Carbon Rotec had to file for bankruptcy in October. The production of offshore wind turbines Significant growth in employment in 2016 180,000 160,000 140,000 120,000 100,000 80,000 60,000 40,000 20,000 0 Wind total 121,800 103,100 96,100 104,000 92,100 92,500 4,000 8,600 137,800 119,000 149,200 149,700 130,500 17,800 18,800 18,700 127,100 22,600 160,200 133,000 27,200 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Jobs directly and indirectly associated with the wind energy industry in Germany, onshore (■) and offshore (■). Source: BMWi 2018, “Economic Indicators of the Energy System“; graph: Ahnen&Enkel Wind Industry in Germany 25