German cabinet agrees gas tax for consumers from October


The plan, announced last week, comes as Europe’s biggest economy tries to reduce its dependence on Russian energy. It faces collapsing gas supplies and soaring prices, raising fears of energy shortages and bankruptcies among gas traders.

“The temporary withdrawal is the result of the crisis caused by Russia. It is not an easy measure to take, but it is necessary to guarantee heating and energy supply for households and the economy,” said Economy Minister Robert Habeck in a statement.

The consumer tax, which will be accompanied by targeted relief, aims to help importers, in particular Uniper, the largest recipient of Russian gas in Germany, which is benefiting from a state bailout. Other companies include VNG, the gas division of EnBW.

The tax is expected to take effect from October 1 and end on April 1, 2024, the minister said.

Its exact amount will be published in mid-August, the minister said. Mr Habeck said last week that it would be between 1.5 euro cents and 5 euro cents per kilowatt hour (Kwh), with proceeds from the tax being made available to any company needing to replace Russian gas .

Government and parliamentary sources told Reuters that it remains to be clarified how the tax will be applied to customers with fixed price contracts.



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