Germany issues Russian gas warning — RT Business News
A complete suspension of natural gas supplies from Russia is a possibility, the head of Germany’s Federal Network Agency warned on Saturday.
In an interview with the Funke press group, Klaus Muller reiterated his call to reduce consumption and raised fears that the upcoming shutdown for maintenance of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, a key gas artery, « will turn into a longer political interview. »
Earlier this week, Nord Stream AG, the operator of the undersea pipeline, announced it would close both chains of the route for repair work from July 11 until July 21. Gazprom, the company’s majority shareholder, said maintenance was planned and agreed with all partners.
Muller said that “If during maintenance the flow of gas from Russia is reduced for a longer period for political reasons, we need to talk more seriously about savings.”
While keeping power flowing to households is a top priority, the official did not rule out the possibility of power outages.
“Private households enjoy special protection, as do hospitals and retirement homes, for example. If there is rationing, we must first reduce consumption in the industrial sector,” Muller was quoted as saying.
“We have learned from the coronavirus crisis that we should not make any promises if we are not absolutely sure that we can keep them. However, we see no scenario in which no more gas comes to Germany,” he added.
In addition to the planned maintenance, which will interrupt gas flow via Nord Stream for 10 days, Gazprom has been forced to cut supplies by up to 60% due to technical problems resulting from Western sanctions introduced against Moscow for its military operation in Ukraine. .
Gazprom said German equipment maker Siemens Energy failed to return gas pumping units to a compressor station in time because repaired turbines for the gas route are currently stuck at a maintenance facility in Canada due to Ottawa sanctions against Russia.
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