‘It is one minute before midnight’: the view from Germany’s industrial heartland

Energy crisis piles pressure on small and medium-sized businesses that are struggling with other costs

• What a nuclear power station tells us about Germany's energy dilemma
• Mercedes faces dilemma over dependence on Russia and China

The winding route through the German countryside from Stuttgart to the small town of Mulfingen gives few clues that this south-west region is home to several companies that are global market leaders in their field.

But north-east Baden-Wurttemberg boasts several successful specialist firms which make up the Mittelstand, the base of small and medium-sized engineering businesses that are the backbone of the German economy and are envied around the world.