- The German company Siemens Energy has confirmed losses of EUR 4,588 million and has asked the German and Spanish governments for guarantees. Next 21 November it will announce its strategic plan and the impact of the restructuring on the workplaces of its subsidiary Siemens Gamesa in the Basque Country will be known.
In the renewable sector, the waters mix and the winds are proud. Siemens Energy, a subsidiary created by the powerful German multinational Siemens for energy-related businesses, launched the red alarm a long time ago and this Wednesday confirms that in 2023 it will have huge losses, six times greater than last year: EUR 4,588 million.
The loss has been attributed to its wind-related branch, Siemens Gamesa, of Basque origin and which maintains many workplaces, because of the technical problems of some types of turbines and because it does not foresee the increase in raw materials. Problems have occurred in onshore and off-shore wind.
Siemens Energy called for a EUR 15 billion bailout a couple of weeks ago and after having been negotiating with the German Government, on Tuesday it announced that the executive of Olaf Scholz will provide a guarantee of EUR 7.5 billion, having agreed with the banks a plan of EUR 12 billion.
Siemens Energy will announce its strategic plan on 21 November and is expected to know how restructuring will affect the Basque Country’s workplaces
Three years later, Siemens Energy should provide a "balance" as it will allow it to finance some investments. But governments and banks are calling for measures to cover a restructuring of the company and the economic hole generated.
For its part, the Ministry of Industry of the Government of Spain is considering a guarantee of EUR 3 billion, provided that the 5,000 jobs of Siemens Gamesa can be maintained in the Spanish State, as requested by the trade unions, according to various information.
Concerned the workers of the Basque Country
Siemens Gamesa has almost 3,000 employees in Euskal Herria, mainly in the Zamudio and Sarriguren centres. Workers are concerned about the situation of the company and the "whole sector".
On 7 November they were in the Parliament of Navarre and asked the Government of Madrid to put pressure on the Government of Navarre and parliamentarians. The workers determined that the group's losses are only "predictions" and that "financial engineering" is being done behind them without transparency.
Siemens Energy will announce its strategic plan on 21 November and is expected to know how restructuring will affect the Basque Country’s workplaces.
The Basque Government has also looked at the issue with concern. In any case, spokesman Bingen Zupiria has pointed out that the request by Siemens Energy is not a "rescue", but guarantees given by the German Government and the banks.
According to a study by the Allianz Group, the top eight companies in the renewable sector have reduced their assets by €3 billion
Sector Severo
The Siemens Energy managers attribute the crisis to failures or problems in financing specific turbines, but it is not the only company in the renewable sector that is being breeds. Ørsted, a giant Danish operator, has had to suspend many projects in the US.
According to a study by the Allianz Group, which has covered the CNBC, the top eight companies in the renewable sector have reduced their assets by €3 billion, mainly because of their problems in the wind field.
The bottleneck, the war in Ukraine, the technical problems, the scarce resources, and the increased raw materials generated by this cocktail have led to the mistrust of investors, because the projects will be much more expensive and the benefits will be worse.