Peter Altmaier, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A major strength of German industry is the quality and innovation of the products it develops. In order to maintain high standards in these areas, our companies are permanently thinking ahead. To survive on global markets, they must seek to make both their products and production processes increasingly more sustainable and energy and resource efficient. And when it comes to electric mobility, there is huge potential for improvement in these areas – right across the entire value chain.
Electric mobility is based on cutting-edge technology that is also greener and more environmentally friendly than conventional transportation technology. It therefore offers major promise for a cleaner future. In the years ahead, vehicles are also set to become highly networked, which will enable them to incorporate new services and drive assistance functions. By developing technologies linked to these two areas, there are good opportunities for our firms to strengthen their leading position on the global market and thus to create further stimulus for our already flourishing economy.
It is therefore vital that we continue our research and development on electric and digitised mobility concepts and ensure that Germany has a positive investment climate. In order to keep on mastering new challenges, our industry needs to be characterised by a spirit of innovation and an openness to new technologies; ensuring we have the right regulatory framework in place will then enable us to make sure the technologies we develop are able to compete on the market.
We in Germany now have the opportunity to create leading markets and production sites for electric mobility. Let us unite our efforts and grasp this opportunity together. I wish all those attending eMove360° Europe 2018 interesting discussions and innovative new ideas.
Sincerely yours,
Peter Altmaier
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy
