Germany achieves independence from Russian energy in record time

the war on Ukraine has revealed the decisive dependence of Russia in the energy supply of Germanythe main European economic power, which was forced to reorient its policy towards Moscow while doubts arise about the priorities in its relations with China.

When Russia invaded Ukraine last February, Germany imported more than half of its gas needs from Moscow, mainly through the gas pipeline. North Stream 1as well as half of the mineral coal and a third of the crude oil.

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However, the then newly invested chancellor, Olaf Schölzwhich very reluctantly had just paralyzed the Nord Stream 2 certification process under pressure from its allies, reacted by declaring a “Zeitenwende” or “change of era”, a term that has been the leitmotiv of its speeches ever since.

The Social Democrat made it clear from the beginning that an embargo on Russian gas was not on the table, but he entrusted the Minister of Economy and Vice Chancellor, the green Robert Habeck, with the daunting task of reducing this dependency against the clock, with the aim of eliminating it until 2024. .

However, this goal was reached sooner than expected, since in June the Russian Gazprom it reduced the flow of gas through the Nord Stream by 50%, citing technical reasons, and the supply was gradually reduced until it stopped completely at the end of August, although since then Germany has still received small amounts of Russian gas through other routes.

Pipe systems are seen at the industrial plant of the Baltic Sea oil pipeline Nord Stream 1, Lubmin, northeastern Germany, near the border with Poland, on August 30, 2022. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP) (ODD ANDERSEN /)

Berlin has displayed a frenetic activity this year, increasing pipeline imports from Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands and initiating construction of liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, the first of which will be ready for imports from countries by the end of the year. like Qatar.

The green government partners had to swallow toads such as the reactivation of some twenty coal plants that had gone into reserve to save electricity and the extension until spring of the useful life of the last three nuclear reactors of Germanywhich were to be disconnected at the end of the year.

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Contrary to the initial forecast, the Executive’s efforts managed to fill the gas tanks to the brim, which at the beginning of December were at 98.24% of their capacity, and consumption fell significantly, by 16% at the end of December. November, although unusually high temperatures also played a role.

Despite all this, the vertiginous rise in prices forced the State to bail out gas importing companies in trouble, such as Uniper -the main foreign client of Gazprom– and forced part of the industry to reduce production, while citizens face 100% increases in heating costs and runaway inflation.

The Government responded to the recession forecasts with a battery of aid, including the reduction of VAT on gas, and with the creation of an anti-crisis umbrella of 200,000 million euros in three years from which a brake on gas prices will be financed and of electricity.

The reliance on Russian crude has also provided the occasional headache, but thanks to an agreement with Poland and the nationalization of a key refinery that was in Russian hands, compliance with the European embargo is expected to be possible.

The logo of the Russian energy giant Gazprom on a gas station in Moscow. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP) (KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV /)

scholz repeats over and over again the mantra that the answer to the energy crisis is not deglobalization and protectionism, but the diversification of trade relations and imports of raw materials, without forgetting the record of the partners in terms of human rights .

However, his policy towards China has been the target of criticism and has caused divisions with the Greens, who from the Finance and Foreign Ministries are in favor of putting human rights and environmental considerations first and avoiding a repetition of the past mistakes with Russia.

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Thus, although the government has banned some Chinese investment in semiconductor factories in Germany, under the guidance of scholz authorized the purchase of part of a terminal in the port of Hamburg by the Chinese giant Cosco.

This occurred just before the controversial investiture trip of the chancellor to Beijing, in which he was accompanied by a large delegation of German multinationals and was the first by a European president since the start of the pandemic.

Facing China, a sense of proportion and pragmatism are needed, defends Scholz, in view of which, it remains to be seen if the Germany after the invasion of Ukraine, more vulnerable, forced to reinvent itself, is willing to make new sacrifices in favor of China. of their values.

Source: Elcomercio