Companies in Germany are investing more money in climate action measures, according to the German development bank KfW. One in seven euros was spent on climate projects.
At €72.2 billion ($78.3 billion), the amount invested in 2022 was 18 percent higher than a year earlier in real terms, according to a KfW survey.
“Climate protection as an investment area has become measurably more relevant for German companies,” said KfW Chief Economist Fritzi Köhler-Geib.
Of all new investments by the German corporate sector in 2022, one in seven euros was spent on climate projects, compared to one in eight euros a year earlier, the data shows.
However, despite the companies increasing their commitment, far more action is needed, the KfW said of the results.
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“In order to achieve climate neutrality in Germany by the middle of the century, we estimate that private companies will need to invest an average of around €120 billion per year,” Köhler-Geib said.
Germany wants to become climate neutral by 2045, aiming to emit only as much greenhouse gases as can be absorbed again.
Of the sums spent on climate measures, companies spent the most in the area of mobility in 2022, for example by purchasing electric cars and charging stations (49 percent). After that came projects to generate or store electricity or heat from renewable energies (36 percent), followed by measures such as insulation to improve buildings’ energy efficiency (28 percent).
Surce: DPA
