The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) is responsible for a range of government policies that are reflected in the name of the ministry itself. Previously known as the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy, it was renamed in December 2021 by the current Federal Government led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz in line with a rearrangement of competences for climate and energy policy in Germany. As a result, the BMWK now for the first time brings together the legislative and regulatory competences for economic affairs, energy policy and climate policy (with the exception of climate diplomacy) in one ministry. It is led by Robert Habeck (Alliance ‘90/The Greens), the current Vice Chancellor of Germany and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action.

The BMWK drafts laws for the federal government which are then submitted to the Bundestag (federal parliament) and in some cases the Bundesrat (federal council). The ministry is also responsible for issuing statutory instruments - subordinate legislation which specifies further details of a law, in particular with regard to enforcement. The ministry is involved in all legislative projects which have an impact on its areas of competence.

In addition to shaping framework legislation, the BMWK also has economic instruments at its disposal. Support programmes are financed through taxes and the revenues from emissions trading, for example. This enables members of the public, associations, companies and municipalities to obtain financial support for specific projects.

During the last legislative period, the number of staff working at the ministry was approximately 2,100. For 2021, the ministry had an overall budget of 10.43 billion Euros.

More information about the BMWK is available here.