Status: 04.07.2022 3:05 p.m
The energy company Uniper, which got into trouble because of the gas crisis, can hope for state help. He continues to struggle with the consequences of significantly reduced gas supplies from Russia. Even an entry by the state is no longer out of the question.
As the troubled energy company Uniper continues to struggle with the consequences of the reduced gas delivery volumes from Russia via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, the search for solutions is becoming more urgent: “As in the last few days, we are still at around 40 percent of us nominated quantities that arrive in Germany,” explained Uniper at the beginning of the week.
A few days ago, the group called for help from the state because of the high financial burden of buying replacement quantities on the spot market. Uniper and other energy companies currently have to buy gas there at very high prices, but cannot pass these costs on to customers with long-term contracts.
According to a spokeswoman for Economics Minister Robert Habeck, the Ministry of Economic Affairs is working “under high pressure” on solutions due to the tense situation of the energy company. The federal government is in talks with the company about stabilization measures.
Does the state step in?
The spokeswoman also said talks on changes to the Energy Security Act are ongoing within the government. The aim is to prepare for a continued tense situation on the energy markets and to fill the toolbox. The energy markets must remain functional. The spokeswoman Habecks pointed out that Uniper had not previously drawn an existing credit line from the state bank KfW of over two billion euros. The credit line serves to ward off acute liquidity needs.
Uniper had stated that investments in the form of equity were also possible. That would mean that the state would temporarily get involved with Uniper – as it did with Lufthansa in the Corona crisis. In order to distribute possible drastic price jumps more evenly to gas customers, the federal government is also working on a possible allocation system.
Statutory regulation in the Energy Security Act?
The Reuters news agency had previously reported, citing government and coalition circles, that the federal government wanted to enshrine in law possible support for gas companies such as Uniper up to and including state involvement. A corresponding paragraph should also be anchored in the Energy Security Act, according to those familiar with the plans.
Instruments from the Economic Stabilization Fund (WSF), which was launched during the Corona crisis, should serve as a model for this. Lufthansa was also saved with him. The law with further regulations such as the option of a faster and more even transfer of the sharply increased gas procurement costs is to be passed in the Bundestag and Bundesrat on Friday.
The Lufthansa model
During the crisis, Lufthansa and the travel group TUI primarily used silent participations from the WSF. This is a form of interest-bearing equity in which the lender, unlike a shareholder, has no voting rights. The interest rate at Lufthansa was initially four percent and would have risen to 9.5 percent with long-term use by 2027. In the case of the airline, the state also participated directly by acquiring a block of shares of 20 percent. This made the state the main shareholder, which was allowed to provide two representatives on the supervisory board.