Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) Klaus Müller, head of the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) gas regulator, warned on Friday that gas price could triple.
He reminded that gas flow through the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline is reduced and noted that a coming maintenance stoppage could stop the flow altogether, according to DW reporting.
In an interview with ARD broadcaster, Müller pointed out that “most scenarios are not pretty and result in either too little gas at the end of winter or sooner – a very difficult situation.”
The Nord Stream 1 is currently operating at roughly 40% of capacity, with BNetzA previously calling on consumers to implement measures aimed at saving energy and warning that further reductions of flow through the pipeline could cause gas prices to rise threefold.
“Everyone in the industry and in their home life can contribute to this — and yes, this also includes jumpers, shower heads, turning the heating down a bit, all of this helps,” Müller pointed out.
Storage for 75 days
Speaking on Thursday with ZDF broadcaster, he predicted that Germany could do up to two and a half months without Russian gas, stressing that it could do without Russian gas altogether if storages were all the way full.
Müller stressed the importance of saving gas and finding new suppliers, reminding us that the country activated the second stage of its emergency gas plan.
He pointed out that, if Germany activates the third stage of the plan, consequences for the gas industry would be “terrible and drastic.” Müller noted that BNetzA would ration gas in the third stage and prioritize households over companies.
Robert Habeck, German Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, pointed out in an interview on Friday that some branches of industry would have to close if the gas situation deteriorates by winter.
“Companies would have to stop production, lay off their workers, supply chains would collapse, people would go into debt to pay their heating bills, that people would become poorer,” he warned.
According to Habeck, Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to divide Germany to create “the best breeding ground for populism, which is intended to undermine our liberal democracy from within.”
