Industry dialogue Energy industry publishes risk profile
Berlin, 13 September 2023: The Energy Sector Dialogue, in which PowerShift is also involved, today published the report entitled “Potential human rights risks along supply and value chains”. In it, the Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS), companies, associations, trade unions, civil society organisations and the German Institute for Human Rights jointly analysed the human rights risks of the German energy industry along its global supply and value chains. The document should serve as a basis for the development of concrete measures to remedy human rights violations and as an indication for the individual risk analyses of companies.
"The promotion and combustion of fossil fuels is driving the climate crisis and seriously endangering human rights. Therefore, the phase-out of fossils – coal, oil and also natural gas – needs to be implemented within a few years. The necessary expansion of renewables, in turn, has its own human rights risks, which must be addressed separately, precisely because – as the risk profile shows – they often occur in the lower parts of the supply chains", says Hendrik Schnittker, who accompanies the industry dialogue for PowerShift.
The energy industry dialogue can play an important role in this, provided that the identified risks can be addressed with appropriate measures: "In addition to a collective approach, the key to this is the early involvement of rights holders in order to ensure the effectiveness of potential prevention and remedial measures," Schnittker continued.
Based on the publication ‘Potential human rights risks along the supply and value chains’, the members of the industry dialogue identified key topics for relevant stages of the supply and value chains, in particular:
• procurement of raw materials, and
• Construction and operation of large-scale infrastructure projects.
For these priority topics, industry dialogue working groups will devise joint prevention and remedial measures, which will then be implemented.
Press contact
Hendrik Schnittker, PowerShift e.V.
Tel.: 0162 3899451
