Tuesday, October 19, 2021
Discuss energy needs globally
Merkel: China still needs gas until 2060
The industrialized nations are struggling to take measures against high energy prices. The short supply on the gas market could also be a problem in the coming years. Chancellor Merkel is therefore calling for an international agreement on gas requirements – because this is likely to turn out to be very different in the future.
Chancellor Angela Merkel calls for more international agreements, including within the G20 framework, on future gas needs. “I advise against rashly pointing the blame,” said Merkel, referring to the high gas prices and alluding to allegations against Russia. “Pricing is a complicated thing,” she added.
Referring to a conversation with China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang, Merkel said that China, for example, is afraid of a quick switch from coal to gas-fired power plants because, given the size of the country, the global gas market would change very quickly. “We have to exchange ideas here, perhaps also at the G20 or at least internationally, as to what the expected energy needs are now in the transformation of the economies,” said Merkel. Germany, for example, will be climate neutral in 25 years and order less natural gas, while China will need gas until 2060. That is why it would be important to be able to plan better.
The Chancellor praised the measures proposed by the EU Commission against high energy prices, but pointed out that some countries had already secured their energy supplies for the next few years through long-term contracts.
The Federal Ministry of Economics continues to see Germany’s gas supply as secure this winter. A ministry spokeswoman said that the gas storage tank level had fallen slightly to 70 percent. But this is within the framework of the usual fluctuations. There were similar values in 2015 as well. Government spokesman Steffen Seibert also defended Russia against allegations that it was not delivering enough gas to Europe.
As far as the German government is aware, the Russian energy company Gazprom is fulfilling its contractual delivery obligations, said Seibert. Last week, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said that gas storage facilities in Germany were 75 percent full, with a slight upward trend.