Doubts and apprehension in the shift towards renewable energies
Headline: Dortmund, Hamm, and Unna Companies Call for Action to Secure Affordable and Sustainable Energy Transition
In the latest Energy Transition Barometer 2025, companies from Dortmund, Hamm, and the district of Unna have outlined key political measures to ensure a secure, affordable, and environmentally friendly energy transition and climate protection.
The survey, conducted by the Chambers of Industry and Commerce (IHK), involved 3,600 companies nationwide, including 131 from the aforementioned regions.
Barriers to Transformation
The survey reveals that 53% of respondents view "lack of information and lack of predictability and reliability in energy policy" as a significant barrier to transformation, an increase from 2024's 45%. Moreover, "too much bureaucracy" remains the biggest hurdle to transformation efforts, with 55% of companies citing it (an increase from 2024's 66%).
Economic Impact
About 44% of companies report an increase in electricity prices, and around 41% stated that the costs for energy in the area of heat generation have increased. As a result, more than a third of companies therefore assess the impact of the energy transition on their own competitiveness as negative or very negative. However, it's worth noting that 19% of companies see positive or very positive effects of the energy transition on their competitiveness.
In the regional industry, 56% assess the impact on competitiveness as very negative or negative. Interestingly, a significant number of service companies in the region (44%) see a loss of competitiveness at the location Germany, compared to 22% of industrial companies.
Recommended Measures
To address these challenges, the surveyed companies recommend several key political measures:
- Support and incentivize the market ramp-up of electric vehicles by addressing information deficits regarding their safety, creating incentives for optimized charging times, and simplifying charging infrastructure especially in multi-family dwellings.
- Stabilize energy prices through government action to make renewable energy expansion feasible and affordable while modernizing and expanding power grid infrastructure to handle increased renewable capacity.
- Streamline approval and reduce bureaucratic hurdles for renewable energy projects, particularly in wind power, to speed up project realization and increase renewable electricity generation capacity.
- Promote development and scaling of hydrogen technologies, supported by targeted government policies and incentives, to diversify clean energy sources and foster new infrastructure investments.
- Increase investments in energy storage solutions and grid infrastructure to manage balancing supply and demand effectively amid the growing share of renewables.
These measures reflect a combination of legislative, regulatory, and incentive-based political actions recommended by companies to advance the energy transition while ensuring affordability and environmental sustainability. The focus is on accelerating electric mobility adoption, supporting renewable energy capacity growth with reduced bureaucratic obstacles, upgrading grid systems, and fostering emerging clean energy technologies like hydrogen.
Improved Mood and Promised Reliefs
Despite the challenges, the mood among the surveyed companies has improved this year, partly due to the new federal government and promised reliefs. Additionally, 54% of companies aim for climate neutrality by 2024.
[1] Source: Energy Transition Barometer 2025 [2] Source: Energy Transition Barometer 2025 [4] Source: Energy Transition Barometer 2025
