"The Council has to consider the competiveness of the energy intensive primary industries to a greater extent in its decisions," said Utz Tillmann, spokesman for the Alliance of Energy Intensive Industries in Germany (EID) and Director General of the German Chemical Industry Association (VCI). "Ultimately, we need a solution that meets the climate targets while sustaining investments and jobs in Europe." "Energy intensive industries face intense international competition," added Tillmann. These enterprises have also done more or less everything technically possible to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. If the European Commission goes ahead with its plans to drastically reduce certificate allocations, these companies will have to purchase vast numbers of additional certificates. The resulting costs would substantially impair their international competitiveness.