WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • BioNTech will close facilities in Marburg, Idar-Oberstein and Tübingen after failing to find buyers, affecting around 1,800 employees.
  • Falling COVID vaccine demand left BioNTech with excess manufacturing capacity as it shifts resources toward its oncology pipeline.
  • The Rhine reached record low readings after an unusually dry September, with Cologne recording 40 centimeters.
  • Germany marked the Constitutional Court’s 75th anniversary as President Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned of threats to liberal democracy.

BioNTech will close three facilities in Germany after the COVID-19 vaccine maker failed to find buyers amid what it described as a difficult market and investment environment. The affected sites are located in Marburg, Idar-Oberstein and Tübingen.

The German biotech company is also ending operations in Singapore. BioNTech, which is based in Mainz, announced plans in May to sell the facilities as part of a broader restructuring of its manufacturing operations.

Around 1,800 employees are affected by the three German closures. BioNTech previously said the wider restructuring could affect as many as 1,860 positions, and the company has reached agreements with its works council on additional redundancy terms for affected workers.

BioNTech rose to global prominence during the COVID-19 pandemic after developing an mRNA vaccine with US pharmaceutical company Pfizer. Demand for COVID vaccines has since fallen sharply, leaving the company with manufacturing capacity it no longer needs.

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The company is increasingly directing resources toward its oncology pipeline. BioNTech has said the restructuring could eventually produce annual savings of approximately €500 million, equivalent to $587 million.

The closures topped a broad slate of German news on Monday, September 28, 2026. Another major concern involved the Rhine River, where water levels fell to record lows following an unusually dry September.

A monitoring station in Cologne recorded a reading of 40 centimeters, just under 16 inches, on Monday morning. Cologne official Markus Neumann told the DPA news agency, “The 40 centimeters constitutes a low-water record.”

Before a series of records during recent months, Cologne’s lowest measurement had been 69 centimeters in 2018. Readings in Koblenz, Andernach and Düsseldorf moved into negative territory, indicating that the gauging stations were completely dry.

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Those measurements do not represent the absolute depth available for shipping because the gauges are located at more accessible points near the riverbanks. The difference varies by station but is generally about 1 meter shallower than the navigable shipping channel.

The Rhine had already reached repeated record lows in August during a hot and dry summer, severely affecting commercial shipping. Germany’s WSV river agency also had low water warnings in place along portions of the Elbe, Danube, Weser, Ems and Oder.

Germany also marked the 75th anniversary of the Federal Constitutional Court with a ceremony in Karlsruhe attended by roughly 1,000 guests. President Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned that liberal democracy was increasingly threatened by “forces at the political margins.”

The court was founded on September 28, 1951, and serves as Germany’s highest court for constitutional matters. Through the end of 2025, it had handled almost 274,000 cases, with more than 96% involving judicial reviews following constitutional complaints.

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Elsewhere, hackers accessed data belonging to customers and employees of German grocery delivery company Flink. The compromised information included names, delivery addresses, email addresses and telephone numbers, while passwords, payment information, bank details and credit card information were not affected.

Flink said the attackers were contacting customers and employees directly and demanding payments. The company advised those affected not to answer the messages or send money, while external IT forensics and cybersecurity experts joined its investigation.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul visited the International Criminal Court in The Hague and pledged continued German support despite increased pressure from the US. Wadephul and Dutch Foreign Minister Tom Berendsen said they would pursue measures to protect the court from further sanctions.

In another development, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Metro AG’s Russian assets to be placed under temporary administration. Metro said the operations still formally belonged to the German company, but it no longer had operational control over the business, which employs 9,000 people in Russia.

Former CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn also gave up his seat on the German parliament’s Budget Committee following criticism over his absence during two days of parliamentary business. Spahn said the controversy surrounding him made normal work nearly impossible and that he would focus on his constituency and family.

Brandenburg, meanwhile, unveiled what developer Gicon called the world’s tallest wind turbine. The 365 meter structure in Schipkau is scheduled to begin operating in November and is expected to generate enough electricity for as many as 7,500 households.

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