BERLIN - Germany's presidential palace in Berlin is no longer lit at night, the city of Hanover is turning off warm water in the showers of its pools and gyms, and municipalities across the country are preparing heating havens to keep people safe from the cold. And that's just the beginning of a crisis that will ripple across Europe.that would be unprecedented for a developed nation.
Rationing and recession are looming for Germany, and authorities have voiced concern about social unrest if the energy shortage spins out of control. The country can't even count on France, where faulty nuclear reactors are compounding the gas crunch. Electricity prices in Europe's two-biggest economies surged to records last week.
Habeck, who oversees energy policy, called Gazprom's rationale"farcical", but acknowledged that the situation is serious and renewed his plea for companies and consumers to step up savings efforts.in a setback for climate efforts and recommends that Germans install efficient showerheads and wash clothes at cooler temperatures.
The cost increases, which will start filtering through in earnest this autumn, add to pressure on the poor. Already around one-in-four Germans has slipped into energy poverty, meaning costs for heating and lighting affect the ability to cover other expenses, according to the Cologne Institute for Economic Research. The government is now working on aid programmes for low-income households.
BASF SE is one of those. The chemicals giant plans to cut gas-intensive production of ammonia - a key component for fertiliser - after surging costs rendered the business unprofitable. It's also planning to partially switch power and steam production at its main site in Ludwigshafen to fuel oil, which would help free up gas to sell back to the grid.
Most Germans support Ukraine - about half say the government should continue backing Kyiv despite rising energy costs, according to a Policy Matters poll for Die Zeit - but critics like Kretschmer could gain traction as temperatures drop. That would heap even more pressure on Scholz. Before the war, a unit of Gazprom controlled about 20 per cent of Germany's gas-storage capacity, had a significant stake in an Austrian site and held rights to stash away large amounts of fuel in the Netherlands. But the state-run gas giant didn't rebuild inventories ahead of last winter, a sign that preparations for weaponising energy had taken place under Europe's nose.
straits_times Would have been years if they listened to Trump at the UN! Dummkopfs
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