28.12.2022, Berlin.
Germany will have to live with high gas prices for at least another year, German Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck told the German news agency Deutsche Presse Agentur (dpa) on December 28.
“When will prices decrease? I hope it will be better by the end of 2023, although not at the level of 2021,” the minister said. “For another year, we will have to tolerate high prices,” he added.
According to the minister’s calculations, by 2024, Germany will be able to sufficiently expand the infrastructure for receiving and transporting liquefied gas, which will replace the discontinued supplies from Russia. Then the gas prices will drop on their own to world prices, which are currently well below those in Germany.
By the end of December 2022, the gas prices in Germany went down to 100 euros per megawatt-hour. However, in mid-2021, consumers were paying a maximum of €30 per megawatt hour.
According to the official data, the gas storage capacity in Germany is 88% full. In this regard, German authorities have expressed confidence in the country’s energy security for the winter period.
The expectations of German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck are significantly more optimistic than those of the German population. According to polls by the YouGov public opinion institute, the majority of those surveyed expect Germany to have gas supply problems this year or next.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
