German energy regulator: no shortage of natural gas, but must continue to use it sparingly

The head of Germany's energy regulator said that while Germany is not currently experiencing gas shortages such as rationing, households and industry will need to continue to save money in light of the current cold snap.

In a media interview, Klaus Mueller, director of the German Federal Grid, noted that Germany's current gas storage level is 92.45 percent, compared to 87.34 percent for the European Union as a whole. mueller warned that Germany still has a long way to go before it can fully weather the energy crisis.

Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Russia has drastically reduced its gas supply to Europe due to the sharp deterioration in Russian-European relations. To prevent an emergency this winter, the EU has set a gas storage target of at least 80 percent filling of storage reservoirs before the onset of winter.

Due to the relatively warm weather in the fall, Germany and indeed the EU met their gas storage targets ahead of schedule, laying a solid foundation to get through this winter. However, by December, Europe was hit by a cold snap and demand for natural gas rose, testing the region's energy reserve levels.

Germany's energy regulator warned that the country must save at least 20 percent of its gas consumption by Feb. 1 to ensure gas stock levels do not fall below 40 percent to avoid shortages.

Mueller said, "We can easily cope for two or three weeks when the weather gets colder and consumption rises, but this must not continue in January and February, we must prepare for the next winter, which is 2023-2024."

He added: "October and November were warm and we've been very careful to control our gas consumption. And December was probably one of the coldest months in the last 10 years, and this Monday we even lost a full percentage point of natural gas reserves."

Mueller stressed that this level of consumption is not normal. He added, "So, despite the cold weather, I make a request: watch your gas consumption."