ERFURT “Producing, living, and working in a CO2-neutral way in the Eichsfeld region” – under this guiding principle, various stakeholders from business and society aim to launch a comprehensive project for the transformation and decarbonization of energy supply and industrial value creation in the northwestern Thuringian district. A corresponding declaration of intent, with the goal of helping to make the Eichsfeld region greenhouse gas neutral, was signed today, Thursday, December 7, 2023, by representatives of Eichsfeld companies and institutions that initiated the project: Signatories included Dr. Stefan Hoppe, Managing Director of Eichsfelder Schraubenwerk GmbH (ESW); Bernd Spitzbarth, IG Metall Nordhausen; Horst Albert of LEG Thüringen ; as well as company representatives and works council members from MUBEA, MUSASHi, and Gestamp GRIWE; representatives of the municipality and the institutions “Thuringian Energy and GreenTech Agency (ThEGA)” and “Thuringian Renewable Energy Network (ThEEN) e. V.”; and finally, scientific institutions such as Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences. The signing took place at Eichsfeldwerke, the host of an accompanying workshop.
The breadth of participants underscores that the project initiators understand the mammoth decarbonization project as a holistic undertaking that requires the broadest possible participation and acceptance from a wide range of stakeholders in the district. The ambitious goals of achieving a carbon-neutral economy and society, and securing industrial jobs, can only be reached through cooperation and the creation of synergies – this includes, for example, measures such as waste heat utilization, the joint generation and use of renewable energies, and the transition to a carbon-neutral transportation system with the widespread implementation of electromobility on the roads. Furthermore, companies are assigned a key role in this transformation – both the decision-makers within the companies and their employees and representatives. In the future, companies should achieve climate-neutral production using innovative new processes, while simultaneously leveraging their technological expertise to manufacture products that themselves produce no greenhouse gases – this applies, for example, to components for electric vehicles, the production of which can be significantly expanded given the region's existing expertise. The foundation for the project work now commencing will be a regional energy efficiency network involving as many partners as possible.
