In light of the low levels in Germany’s natural gas storage facilities, Saxony’s Minister of Economic Affairs, Dirk Panter, is calling on the federal government to take action. Instead of appealing to market participants, Federal Minister of Economic Affairs Katherina Reiche (CDU) must explain how she intends to ensure supplies to households and the economy, the SPD politician stated.
“Germany cannot rely on a mild winter, falling prices, or uninterrupted international gas supplies. Security of supply is not a matter of good weather, nor is it a game of waiting it out,” said Panter.
Furthermore, he added, more progress must be made in establishing a national gas reserve. It should be used in times of crisis when the regular gas market is overwhelmed in the short term.
German gas storage facilities are currently about 50 percent full. That is significantly less than in previous years. A spokeswoman for the federal ministry had acknowledged that storage levels are currently “very low” and called on gas traders to inject gas into the storage facilities. However, a gas shortage is not expected.
