BERLIN (dpa-AFX) – The Federation of German Industries (BDI) has described the declaration of the gas alert level by Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck as “understandable”. This is a reaction to the increasingly serious supply situation, said BDI President Siegfried Russwurm on Thursday in Berlin, according to the announcement. “The politically driven reduction in Russian gas supplies poses immense challenges for society and industry.” It makes sense to distribute the associated burdens fairly.
The BDI welcomed the fact that the gas suppliers were initially not given the right to adjust prices under the Energy Security Act (EnSiG). This would lead to legal uncertainty and distortions of competition. “It is now all the more important to quickly find a solution to ensure that all consumers bear the additional costs of gas procurement caused by the crisis in a fair manner.” This new solution would have to replace the mechanism in paragraph 24 EnSiG, which the BDI considered unsuitable from the start./tob/DP/ngu