That’s an overly hot summer would drive in the fall of the fuel prices, would have had barely a couple of months ago on the screen. But actually, because the levels of most of the major rivers of Germany are dangerously low, can tank ships are not fully Laden. It comes to the gasoline shortage, the prices rise.

Now, for normal citizens, with the car is annoying, but not life-threatening. Otherwise it would look like if we are in the Winter, the natural gas assumed to be invalid, because the German firing about half of their apartments, many industries depend on Gas.

2500 helper the disaster

samples In the almost 70 years since the founding of the Federal Republic of Germany has, admittedly, never significant bottlenecks, the Federal office for population protection and disaster assistance (BBK) but I would like to be prepared for the worst. Therefore, the office is rehearsing the disaster on Thursday and Friday with 2500 volunteers in the Eifel. Nine länder and Federal ministries, also delegates from the supply-critical enterprises.

The scenario is a Winter with a long cold spell of minus 25 degrees, low levels in the gas tanks, is a failure of the imports and transport problems to transport the available Gas over longer distances. To simulate the extreme case for the South of Germany, the participating officials and helpers must also react spontaneously always on extra previously produced News alerts via Radio and television.

food and medicines Are scarce?

A guide to serious case there are already residential houses as well as industries that provide long-distance heat, are considered to be “protected customers” and would primarily be supplied with Gas. Because other industries can’t work without natural gas may be, would threaten, in the extreme case, shortages on key products such as medicines or food.

not Enough gas for all of the protected customers, should be vacated, as the first schools, kindergartens, nursing homes, and in the worst case, hospitals with a high effort.

Because the cold would also water lines in the weak – or in unheated buildings in freezing and freezing people are more prone to diseases, would the health care be changed. Plans for all this are in the drawer and will now be on the heart and kidneys checked.

Around half of Germany’s heating needs Gas

50 emergency storage in Germany, intended to bridge short-term bottlenecks. How long will you rich in an emergency, but it is uncertain. In the case of a particularly harsh Winter, it should be assumed that other European States are affected, and their gas exports would limit or not would have to, because transportation routes are usable.

natural gas is to Oil the second most important energy carrier for Germany. Last year it made around 24 per cent of German energy consumption. Only Heat-related, natural gas is even more important: 49.4% of households were supplied in 2017, with natural gas, and a further 13.7 per cent with district heating, which is also made out of Gas.

Germany’s biggest gas importer

Germany is the world’s largest importer of natural Gas. Only about six percent of the country’s consumed raw material, we manufacture according to the Federal Ministry of environment, is decreasing all the time. Most of the natural gas we purchase instead from Russia: imports covered by 2017, around half of our needs.

Behind Norway (27 per cent) and the Netherlands (21 percent) landed. Other countries play only a minor role. Overall, industry and consumers spent 24,35 billion euros for foreign natural gas.

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