Leuna (dpa/sa) – In view of the tense situation in the energy sector, which also affects the chemical industry, more than 450 people took to the streets in Leuna. “The mood was peaceful, positive and constructive, but you could still feel a certain energy,” said a spokesman for the IG BCE Halle-Magdeburg union on Wednesday. Since the rally was organized at short notice, many employees could not have been on site: “That’s why we are planning to repeat it in the near future,” said the spokesman.
At the Leuna chemical site, several companies are also very closely networked and dependent on one another in the production of basic materials and the processing of raw materials, said the spokesman. If individual companies in this production chain fail due to high energy costs, this could, in the worst case, affect other companies. “The consequences for the region and entire branches of industry, even beyond the chemical industry, are not foreseeable,” said the union.
Most recently, the operations of SKW nitrogen works Piesteritz, which have been shut down in the meantime, have made the dependencies clear. “Even if ammonia production in Piesteritz is secured again for the time being and is being ramped up, this incident is an example of the drastic consequences for the Leuna chemical site and far beyond,” the union said.
