Industry under constant pressure: will the chemical industry in the Rhineland turn things around?

Under the central motto “Secure location. Shaping change. Make the future. ”Around 300 high-ranking representatives from sector, politics and associations came to the 15th ChemCologne Chemieforum together in the after-work house of the Knapsack Chemical Park in Hürth to debate the pressing geopolitical, regulatory and economic challenges of the chemical sector in the Rhineland.

At the start of the event, Christoph Kappenhagen, CEO of ChemCologne and Managing Director of YNCORIS GmbH & Co. KG, clarified the urgency of concrete political framework conditions to regional sector. “Our chemical sector in the Rhineland is facing huge challenges. Rising costs and regulatory burdens hit a region whose heartbeat is manufacturing added value and functioning composite structures. We now need a resolute reduction in bureaucracy and internationally competitive energy prices in order to secure this strong manufacturing core in the long term and to keep Europe capable of acting in the global competition, ”said Christoph Kappenhagen in his opening speech.

Nathanael Liminski, Minister to Federal and European Affairs, International Affairs and Media of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia and Head of the State Chancellery, brought the perspective of state politics into the discussion. He assured the sector that the state government would actively support it. He stated in his statement: “Our key manufacturing sectors are the foundation to prosperity, good work and social security in North Rhine-Westphalia. The state government will be a reliable partner to sector on the way to climate neutrality. With this goal, we are also raising our voice in the direction of Berlin and Brussels to reliable framework conditions, efficient infrastructures and competitive location conditions. The Rhineland should also be a strong home to chemistry in the future.”

“Our sector is needed to our resilience and strategic autonomy in an increasingly uncertain world,” said Dr. Markus Steilemann, CEO of Covestro and President of the German Chemical sector Association (VCI). Using a few examples, he showed that Rhenish chemistry “is predestined to transformation and development: thanks to well-trained employees, modern companies and vegetation and a network that hardly exists anywhere else in the world.“ He complained to politicians that there are still no efficiently measures that arrive immediately at the factory gates. “The fact that the burden of proof should be reversed in future reporting obligations, that the funding procedures are simplified-these are all sensible measures that make companies easier,” he said at the end of his speech.

The Rhenish chemical network in transition

The subsequent thematic block was about the transformation of the regional structures. Tim Hartmann, CEO of Currenta, showed that association and innovation are the decisive answers to current competition issues in NRW. Dr. Klaus Altfeld, Head of Corporate research at OGE, outlined the fundamental importance of new line networks using the example of a high-performance CO₂ transport infrastructure to integrated carbon regulation. Melanie Hackler, CEO of matterr, stated in her contribution to the circular economy that hesitation is no longer an option in international comparison. The three speakers then deepened the key points in a lively discussion.

Geopolitical decisions and global megatrends

After a network break, the forum focused on the global areas of tension. Marc Horn, board member of the Association of International Chemical Manufacturers in China, gave deeper insights into China's innovation ecosystems and the technological transformation of the chemical sector there. Dr. André Wolf from the Center to European Politics (cep) presented the current plans from Brussels to secure Europe as a chemical location in the long term. Ralph Kästel and Dr. Christian Eilinghoff from PwC. They summed up the immediate impact of global megatrends on the German chemical sector.