A quarter of Upper Austrian companies cannot rule out a production stop in the coming months due to the high energy prices. This is the result of a lightning survey by the Federation of Austrian Industries (IV), in which 80 companies took part. IV Managing Director Joachim Haindl-Grutsch said he feared that the above-average energy prices would affect the competitiveness of globally active Upper Austrian companies in a global and European comparison.
For around half of the survey participants, secured prices or current contracts would mostly expire at the end of the year. Some energy-intensive companies are still secured for the next two to three years. The rest are already being affected by the price explosion. The share of energy costs in the company’s total costs ranges from less than one to 25 percent and has increased up to sevenfold in some companies.
About a quarter can pass on the increased costs completely, 60 percent partially and 15 percent not at all. A cost-covering operation is already no longer possible for around a quarter of the companies. This number will continue to increase. Relief measures are now needed quickly, according to the demand, such as energy cost subsidies and electricity price compensation.
Source: Nachrichten
