Berlin, Oct 12 (IANS): Seventy-odd German companies, including Aldi, Bayer, Ikea, Telekom and Vattenfall, demanded in a joint statement has said that the next government should lead the country on a "clear and reliable path to climate neutrality."

The new policy framework would have to make "climate-friendly technologies economical while supporting sustainable business models and offering long-term planning security", Xinhua news agency quoted the companies as saying.

"The decade for taking climate action has begun," said Michael Otto, president of the 2 Degrees Foundation, an initiative of German entrepreneurs for climate protection, and chairman of the board of the Otto Group.

By 2030, at least 70 per cent of Germany's rising electricity consumption should come from renewable energy sources, according to the statement issued on Monday. In order to achieve this, the installed capacity of onshore and offshore wind power and photovoltaic would have to be almost tripled.

Companies could act as a "catalyst for the creation of a renewable energy system," the statement said. In order to achieve this, conditions for the implementation of important technical solutions must be made "more attractive and simpler."

Among the proposed technical solutions are the in-house generation and use of renewable electricity; the efficient generation and use of heating and cooling on the basis of renewable energies and industrial waste heat; as well as the production and use of hydrogen generated from renewable sources.