Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) has questioned the prioritization of consumers over industry in the event of a gas shortage. Private households would also have to “pay their share,” said Habeck during a visit to Vienna on Tuesday.
Because “a permanent or long-term interruption of industrial production” would have “massive consequences” for the supply situation.
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“The European Emergency Gas Regulation stipulates that critical infrastructure and consumers are protected and industry and business are not,” explained the Economics Minister.
This makes sense for short-term and regional problems, such as when a power plant fails. “And then they say, well, we’ll bridge that with short-time work benefits for industry and we’ll repair them later, but nobody should freeze.”
Horror scenario of a month-long interruption of gas flows
“But that’s not the scenario we have at the moment,” said Habeck. “We’re possibly talking about a months-long interruption in gas flows.” That’s why we have to think again and rework at this point.
Habeck responded to a question about expectations of the EU strategy for energy security, which the EU Commission is to present next week. If a situation now arises in which a country scales back its economic activity “in order to provide warm homes in another country (…), there must also be a solidarity mechanism of compensation to some extent,” said the Green.
Joint declarations on energy security
Habeck was in the Czech Republic on Monday and signed a joint declaration on energy security there. The aim is to “send a clear signal of cooperation between our countries,” explained the Vice Chancellor afterwards. He signed a similar declaration in Vienna with the local Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler.
Austria is highly dependent on Russian energy imports and is therefore, like Germany, under great pressure due to the lack of gas supplies. Russian President Vladimir Putin is aiming for a split in Europe, Gewessler said. “But Putin will not succeed because and if we stand together.”
As a landlocked country, Austria relies on imports via terminals for landing liquid gas on the German coasts. (AFP)
