This winter is testing their endurance. enterprises her Europe due to the huge increase natural gasespecially for energy-intensive ones, in which bills energy even under normal conditions they reach several million euros. These companies first need to come up with ways to survive beyond temporary subsidies, and to that end, they are cutting energy use, closing factories, laying off staff, focusing on high-margin products, and betting that carefully crafted fuel deals will help them continue. work. in life. The biggest test will come in the harsh cold of the coming months, as both very cold temperatures and possible power outages will further increase the pressure and even cast doubt on their existence, the Financial Times notes.

The Italian glass factory New Murano Gallery was founded 22 years ago on the small island of Murano, not far from Venice, and continues the 800-year tradition that made this place famous. Beautiful vases, candlesticks and other dainty items are known and loved everywhere, but this year the industry faces a fundamental dilemma: find the resources needed to cover rising gas prices, the fuel needed to keep a 1,000-degree stove 24 hours a day. The monthly cost before the Russian invasion was up to 7,000 euros, and now it is 110,000 euros. According to New Murano Gallery co-founder Andrea Perotta, this situation is unmanageable. “Our main problem is energy, as well as raw materials, packaging and transport. All prices have gone up and we are definitely going through the worst crisis in our history,” emphasizes another co-founder, Francesco Scarpa. In 1966, during the time of his father, who was also a glassblower, the then capacities were flooded, the enterprise went bankrupt, new furnaces were bought, and after 10 days everything was working again.

“Now there is no light at the end of the tunnel,” he says. While both countries recognize the importance of government subsidies with tax breaks of up to 40% on electricity bills, the problem of survival lies in weaning them off natural gas. However, they had to make drastic decisions regarding the design of their products. And Perotta explains to the FT: “If we create a collection of eight colors, eight ovens are required, so instead of stopping production, we have reduced the number of ovens and collections.” They also turned to products with higher margins. “Instead of making 300 glasses, we create three glass sculptures,” adds Scarpa. Plain glass costs from 50 euros, and a sculpture from 700 to 2000 euros.

Monthly electricity bills in New Murano were 7,000 euros before the Russian invasion and are now 110,000 euros.

For the German chemical industry Follmann Chemie, founded in 1955, government subsidies, albeit delayed, are welcome. The division employs 900 people and is led by third-generation industrialist Henrik Vollmann, who epitomizes the historic German medium-sized enterprises. Folman says his father recently reminded him that his company survived an energy crisis in the 1970s that was so severe that the government banned driving on Sundays. “Every generation goes through its own challenges, and how we respond to them shapes us as individuals,” he adds. However, he continues to worry about the fate of the German chemical industry. The pandemic has already caused a huge jump in the price of raw materials that Follmann Chemie has handed over to its customers. The big question today is how willing customers of the German chemical industry will be to shoulder the burden of more expensive energy before they start looking for new suppliers in Southeast Asia or North America. It currently pays employees full wages, although their working hours have been reduced and electricity costs have risen from 2% of turnover to 6%.

The Spanish tile company Realonda was founded in 1952. Its kiln has 180 pipes through which natural gas flows continuously to create a temperature of 1200 degrees, firing clay and making tiles. And just the responsibility of general manager David Fernandez-Valladares to always keep the fire in the furnace worries him very much. While the rig is still profitable, in 2021 profit margins have dropped sharply by almost 75%. Just consider that a tenth of all industrial gas consumption comes from tile manufacturers. Realonda is based in the city of Onda, where other related divisions are also located. The energy crisis forced the closure of factories in the wider province of Castellón, and 9,000 of the industry’s 17,000 workers were warned that they could be made redundant – hundreds were made redundant. Fernandez-Valladares is determined not to lose any of his 100 workers. He points out that some of his higher costs are passed on to his clientele. Ordinary porcelain stoneware bathroom tiles with a matt finish cost 8.75 euros per square meter in the retail network before the war, and now they reach 12.05 euros. However, his biggest gamble comes at the end of December, when he will renew his annual gas contract and choose between a fixed price and a market-pegged price, not knowing what is best for him.