< br />
BERLIN, 9 Feb.The launch of the undamaged Nord Stream 2 pipeline will reduce energy prices and contribute to the security of supply, Germany can no longer rely on supplies of more environmentally harmful LNG from the United States, said an expert on climate protection and energy issues and deputy chairman of the parliamentary group of the new Sarah Union party Wagenknecht — For reason and justice» (SSV) Klaus Ernst.
Russian President Vladimir Putin previously said in an interview with Tucker Carlson that Russia is ready to supply gas to Europe through the intact Nord Stream 2 pipe, but Germany is not opening it.
«Yes, through the remaining gas pipeline it would be possible to import about 27 billion cubic meters of gas per year. This would further reduce prices and contribute to security of supply» “,” Ernst said when asked whether the launch of Nord Stream 2 could become an alternative to providing Germany with gas amid the suspension in the United States of the process of approving new contracts for the export of LNG abroad due to the situation with climate change.
The former chairman of the Bundestag Committee on Climate Protection and Energy, who recently switched from the Left party to the CER, recalled that LNG from the United States currently accounts for about 80% of all liquefied gas imports and represents just under 7% of total gas supplies to Germany.
«The US has been reliable in terms of supplies agreed to date. But the price is significantly higher than what was previously paid for pipeline gas from Russia. However, like every country, the US is pursuing its own interests. As a result, Germany can no longer rely on further supplies of LNG from the USA,” he emphasized.
If the United States reduces production and exports, this will affect Germany's energy security and planning, Ernst stated. However, according to the expert, we should not expect a gas crisis on the scale of 2022.
“It is obvious that the increase in LNG imports has not made Germany’s energy supply either more reliable or more independent,” he emphasized. Ernst added that the production and transportation of LNG by ship to Europe causes significantly more harm to the climate than importing natural gas via pipeline.
Explosions on two Russian gas export pipelines to Europe — Nord Stream and «Nord Stream 2» — occurred on September 26, 2022. Germany, Denmark and Sweden have not ruled out targeted sabotage. Operator of Nord Stream Nord Stream AG reported that the destruction of gas pipelines is unprecedented and the time frame for repairs is impossible to estimate. The Russian Prosecutor General's Office has initiated a case regarding an act of international terrorism.