Germany's Scholz celebrates electric car plant future

Olaf Scholz met with businesses and political leaders on Wednesday to celebrate the site's future as a chipmaking factory for electric vehicles in the shadow of the decaying Ensdorf coal plant. It was a promising sign for the German chancellor after a hectic week of pitching Europe's economic powerhouse as it pivots away from energy-intensive old technologies.

The fact that the good old days are gone doesn't mean that the good new days can't begin, Scholz said at the event, which marked a $3 billion deal between American semiconductor maker Wolfspeed Inc. and American auto supplier ZF Friedrichshafen.

The 64 year-old toured last week in Germany's tiny western Saarland region, which is literally half a world away from the South American capitals. On January 29, Scholz was in Buenos Aires, Argentina securing access to the country's hydrogen resources. On Monday he was in Santiago, Chile, negotiating lithium supply for the German industry. He was in Brazil today unveiling a €200 million environmental package with money earmarked for renewable energy initiatives. It could be due to a conflict with your Adblocking or Security software. You can add jp and piano.io to your list of allowed sites. If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see this FAQ. We apologize for the inconvenience.