Major public enterprises in Germany

Abstract

This contribution is embedded in the research project "Country analysis of the role and performance of major public enterprises and the policy trends about the current relationships between government and public enterprises". In Germany public enterprises mainly exist on local level, in comparison rather few are found on federal level. Nevertheless there are very promising public enterprises at federal level suitable for a deeper analysis. To select the cases we applied the following main criteria: 100% ownership by the state, a relevant financial importance (measure applied: nominal capital), relevance of the service provided for the public, interesting historical developments. As a result the following PEs were identified: 1. Deutsche Bahn AG (German Rail) 2. Bundesdruckerei GmbH (Government Printing Office) 3. Deutsche Flugsicherung GmbH (Air Traffic Control) 4. Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (service provider for the German Government in the field of international cooperation for sustainable development) The analysis follows the structure provided in the CfP. The paper is literature based which means that an analysis of secondary scientific literature and studies is carried out. The information gathered is supplemented by consulting the relevant laws and legal requirements, official records and minutes of political decisions and discussions on EU and federal level, contracts if available and other documents such as court decisions, business reports, participation reports, reports of the General Accounting Office, publications of the public enterprises, and press releases of different actors and the media. The results found in the analysis give a deeper inside into the motives of the main policy makers as well as those of the involved stakeholders, and the on's directly affected by the decisions, mainly the citizens.