Julia Verlinden, the Green Party’s deputy faction leader in the Bundestag, has accused federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Katherina Reiche (CDU), of failing to adequately prepare for the winter by addressing the issue of underfilled national gas storage facilities.
Verlinden told the Funke media group that Minister Reiche had sufficient time to prepare for the winter and reduce Germany’s reliance on expensive gas imports. She criticized Reiche’s decision to try and fill the storage facilities at the last minute and at high prices, arguing that this demonstrated a lack of planning and an ideology-driven approach.
According to Verlinden, the government failed to consider measures such as implementing energy-saving initiatives, offering subsidies for scrapping old fossil fuel heating systems, or stimulating the use of renewables and storage to replace gas consumption in electricity generation.
She referenced a letter from EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jörgensen, who had urged member states to continue curbing energy consumption and saving both gas and electricity. Verlinden stated that Jörgensen had offered solid suggestions for preparing for a cold winter through energy conservation, and argued that Reiche now needed to implement these steps and drastically reduce the country’s dependency on fossil fuels. This reduction, she emphasized, must include expanding wind and solar power and electrifying transport, heat, and industry sectors.
As reported on Wednesday, Minister Reiche has subsequently instructed the state-owned company Sefe to purchase and store gas, given that the storage facilities are only 58 percent full.
