Energy crisis: Gas storage fill level reaches 85 percent

The storage of gas in Germany continues despite the gas supply stop through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline.

Energy crisis: Gas storage fill level reaches 85 percent

The storage of gas in Germany continues despite the gas supply stop through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. The storage levels have now exceeded the 85 percent mark, as the Federal Ministry of Economics announced on Twitter on Sunday.

The same can be seen from data published on the website of the European gas storage operators on Sunday: According to this, the storage facilities were 85.02 percent full last Friday (September 2nd). This means that the target set by a regulation by the Federal Government of at least 85 percent fill level by October 1st has been achieved well in advance.

The Russian state-owned company Gazprom had previously announced that it would no longer route gas through the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline, citing a technical defect in the Portovaya compressor station. Until this is fixed, no more gas can flow.

Scholz: "We will get through this winter"

"Putin's Russia has breached its contract," said Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on Sunday at the presentation of the traffic light coalition's third relief package. Russia is no longer a reliable energy supplier. But Germany is prepared for this. "We'll get through this winter."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov blamed the European sanctions policy for the delivery stop. "If the Europeans make an absolutely absurd decision to refuse to maintain their facilities, or rather, facilities owned by Gazprom, then it is not Gazprom's fault, but the fault of the politicians who made sanctions decisions have," he said on the state television program "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin.", as reported by the Interfax news agency on Sunday.

Siemens Energy, manufacturer of the allegedly defective turbine, said on request that the service technicians were ready and always available for Gazprom. However, there is no specific repair order from Gazprom. According to Siemens Energy, a turbine for Nord Stream 1 that has been repaired and is ready for use is still in Mülheim an der Ruhr, waiting to be transported.

It is unclear whether the next storage target can be reached

In any case, Germany now receives significantly more gas from Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands than came from Russia before the delivery stop. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether the next storage target can be achieved without Nord Stream gas. The managing director of the Initiative Energies Storage (INES) industry association, Sebastian Bleschke, had already announced on Friday evening that the storage facilities would continue to be filled. "If the complete failure of Russian gas transport continues into November, it will take a lot of effort to reach the 95 percent target," he said.

In its management report on Sunday, the Federal Network Agency wrote that the gas supply in Germany remained stable, but at the same time again emphasized the importance of economical gas consumption. In the first, somewhat colder week of September, private consumers increased their gas consumption slightly, agency boss Klaus Müller told the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung". Apparently, not everyone is aware that you have to change the heating settings to save gas. "We can all influence whether it works without rationing in winter: it stands or falls with the behavior of private households."

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