Germany has announced the second phase of the so-called gas emergency plan. That is what Minister Robert Habeck of Economic Affairs has Thursday morning announced at a press conference. The first level of the three-part crisis plan has been in effect for the Germans since the end of March. Phase two is more alarming: energy companies are allowed to pass on higher gas prices to their customers, in order to reduce demand. In the first and highest phase, the government can intervene directly in the gas market.
With this plan, supply remains ‘guaranteed’, Habeck stressed. The warehouses are slowly filling up for winter supplies. In the coming period, the minister expects gas prices to increase further in the country. “We are in a gas crisis. Prices are already high and we need to be prepared for further increases,” said Habeck. He spoke of a “national effort” and called on industry, government and households to keep gas consumption as low as possible “to get through the winter”.
In the near future, Germany will focus on filling the gas storage tanks. These have been used in recent weeks to compensate for the shortages from foreign imports, at the expense of winter reserves. In the coming period, the government will look for more alternative providers. This will have to be done in the short term, because repair work on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline is on the agenda for 11 July. they will according to German media take about ten days.
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Gazprom
Germany, dependent on Russian gas, is struggling with major gas shortages, partly due to the war in Ukraine. Gazprom already cut gas supplies to 40 percent of its usual amount last week, it said due to repairs to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. Habeck denied that motive, pointing to a “political decision” as the reason for the decision.
Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than half of the gas imports to Germany came from Russia. The current government has now reduced that to one third by importing more natural gas from the Netherlands and Norway. At the same time, Germany is investing more in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and wants to use coal-fired power stations again, which the country actually wanted to close due to environmental concerns.