Wacker Chemie to Slash 1,500 Jobs as Energy Costs Squeeze EU Producers

Wacker Chemie AG will lay off more than 1,500 workers, becoming the latest European chemical manufacturer to announce cost-cutting measures in response to rising energy prices and regulatory challenges.

The Munich-based company announced its intent Nov. 27 to save 300 million euros a year ($349.2 million), half of which will come from the job cuts.

Most of the workers affected by the layoffs work at the company’s plants in Germany. The company plans to fully implement the cost-savings plan by the end of 2027.

Wacker President and CEO Christian Hartel said the cuts would help reduce costs to a competitive level but called on regulators to provide a more business-friendly environment.

“Particularly in Germany, the excessively high energy prices and bureaucratic obstacles continue to act as a central brake on the successful development of the chemical industry,” he said.

Several chemical manufacturers have announced similar measures over the past year, citing policy issues across Europe as a key issue.

London-based Ineos announced Oct. 6 plans to close two production units in Rheinberg, Germany, resulting in the loss of 175 jobs. The company said the closures were the result of high energy and carbon costs combined with limited tariff protections. 

In September, Shell said it would halt construction of its planned biofuels facility at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park in Rotterdam. The company said it reached the decision after a commercial and technical reassessment found the project was no longer competitive.

And in July, Dow said it would shut down three upstream chemical assets in Europe as part of a broader effort to right-size capacity, reduce merchant exposure and remove higher-cost, energy-intensive operations.

Ineos chairman and founder Jim Ratcliffe has been outspoken about the challenges the European chemical industry faces. In October, he called on European regulators to make an "eleventh-hour intervention and save the chemical industry." Specifically, he asked lawmakers to eliminate green taxes and levies from energy costs, scrap carbon taxes and provide tariff protection. 

On Nov. 10, the company confirmed it had filed 10 major anti-dumping cases with the European Commission. The company cited  European Chemical Trade association figures that show Chinese chemical imports surged by 8.3% in the first half of 2025, flooding Europe with carbon-intensive products that pay a fraction of the EU's energy costs and "no carbon price at all."