Germany, highly dependent on Russia for its hydrocarbon supply, runs the risk of running out of gas next winter, Robert Habeck, Vice Chancellor of Germany, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action declared in an interview this Saturday who multiplies initiatives to avoid this scenario.
The gas supply is “not yet fully guaranteed” for this winter, Robert Habeck said in an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio. “If we don’t get more gas next winter and deliveries from Russia are cut off, then we won’t have enough to heat all the houses and run all the industries,” the minister warned.
The government of Europe’s leading economy is preparing for this eventuality “which we hope can be avoided,” Habeck added. The minister will travel on Saturday to Qatar, one of the three largest exporters of liquefied natural gas (LNG), the resource that European countries have to reduce their dependence on Russian gas, before a follow-up visit to the United Arab Emirates.
The issue is especially sensitive for Germany, where half of gas imports come from Russia. This week, Habeck already visited Norway, a major gas producer, after a trip to the United States earlier in the month.
Berlin is criticized for opposing an immediate embargo on Russian hydrocarbons in order to dry up financial flows to Moscow after Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. But for the government, such a boycott would destabilize the German economy and society due to the expected increase in the cost of energy and the risk of shortages.
