French gas storages are currently 80% full and will be completely filled on November 1, Energy Transition Minister Agnès Pannier-Runacher said on Wednesday.
She “collectively” called on all French people, but especially “the main players” to “make sure to reduce their gas and electricity consumption”, because “the two systems are linked”. “And that goes in the direction of the fight against global warming,” she argued, after a question about the risk of shortages next winter in France and Europe, as a result of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
“The big players, administrations, companies must reduce their consumption,” he insisted. “The slogan of 19 degrees is not respected everywhere,” lamented the minister.
“We count on solidarity”
The Minister recalled and explained the European solidarity mechanisms in place to share access to energy sources. “We count on solidarity, especially from Germany, to import electricity,” he said, referring to production problems facing French nuclear power plants. “And we should be supporting Germany for the gas that we import into our LNG terminals. We currently have four in operation,” he recalled.
He defended the European principle of importing gas from Azerbaijan to compensate for the absence of Russian gas, despite the controversies over human rights in this country. “I don’t think we have any interest in the EU being economically weak and not protecting its people for the coming winter,” she said.
Agnès Pannier-Runacher a par ailleurs qualifié d'”irresponsible” les propos de la candidate du Rassemblement national à l’election présidentielle Marine Le Pen demandant d’en finir avec les sanctions contre la Russie in order to pouvoir de nouveau bénéficier du gaz venant de That country. “The political character who prides himself on being the most patriotic is also the first to sell our republic for a plate of lentils,” said the minister.
Source: BFM TV
