In view of the impending bottlenecks in natural gas, Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) called on German citizens to save energy. It helps Germany and Ukraine to save “gas and energy overall,” said Habeck on Wednesday in Berlin. “Every kilowatt hour is a contribution.” At the same time, he put the first of three stages of the “Gas Emergency Plan” into effect, the so-called early warning stage. From now on, a crisis management team will meet daily, which, in addition to the ministry, also includes the Federal Network Agency, suppliers and gas network operators. The gas from Russia is still flowing, said Habeck. “We’ll see how the situation develops.”
The background to this is the Kremlin’s plans to bill gas deliveries from “unfriendly countries” only in rubles in the future – although the contracts provide for payment in euros or dollars. Only on Monday did the energy ministers of the industrial nations club G7 confirm that they would stick to these agreements. They called on gas importers in their respective countries not to respond to such demands. In fact, however, this could result in a delivery stop.
The preparations for such a case have been made for weeks. Talks are being held between the Federal Network Agency and industry – as “non-protected customers” they would first have to reduce their gas purchases or stop altogether. The Bonn authority would then have the role of the “federal load distributor” who would have to manage the remaining gas quantities – in such a way that the supply for private households and facilities such as hospitals remains secure. In the meantime, they have set up a situation center that collects all information around the clock, according to a statement from the network agency. This has its own power generation and water supply and is therefore “securely available even in the event of a dramatic escalation of the supply crisis”.
According to the Economics Ministry, around 40 percent of German gas imports still come from Russia. “If Russia stops supplying gas, then we will be able to deal with it,” said Habeck. However, the consequences are significant. The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) also warned of “extreme economic consequences” in the event of a delivery stop. The shutdown of individual companies also has serious consequences for companies that purchase their preliminary products, said DIHK President Peter Adrian. The declaration of the early warning level is “responsible”. Municipal utilities and energy suppliers also welcomed the step. In the event of a delivery interruption, everyone involved now needs “a clear timetable for their rights and obligations,” said Kerstin Andreae, head of the BDEW industry association.
However, it is still unclear whether the ruble dispute will escalate. The switch to the ruble will not be completed this Thursday, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. President Vladimir Putin wants to talk to representatives of Gazprom and the central bank first.