Millions to face unaffordable energy bills this winter in Germany
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The head of the German Renters' Association said the government needs to raise the income for housing benefit claimants to 5,000 euros a month and improve employment protections.
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The tank terminal of the 'Oiltanking Deutschland' company in the 'Alt Lankwitz' district is pictured in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022 (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)
Millions of German lower-income households will find it hard to pay their energy bills this winter amid a sharp rise in gas prices, according to Lukas Ievenkotten, head of the German Renters' Association.
"We are talking about millions," Siebenkotten told the Tagesspiegel daily, warning that the people most at risk are those who earn just enough to not qualify for state subsidies.
He noted that the government needs to raise the income threshold to 5,000 euros ($5,000) a month for housing benefit claimants and improve employment protections.
German Finance Minister Christian said on Friday that Germany wants to impose on households a gas levy to bail out its struggling suppliers; however, an extra tax on that surcharge would be a bit too far.
A shortage in Russian gas exports to Germany has raised prices for local suppliers. The German government wishes to divide this burden between suppliers and consumers, who would be charged a levy of up to 0.05 euros ($0.05) per kWh from October 1 to April 1, 2024. This is equivalent to an extra 1,000 euros for a four-person family, excluding the EU's standard value-added tax of 19%.
Nothing prevents delivery of Siemens turbine to Russia: Germany
Berlin does not see any obstacles to delivering a Siemens turbine to Russia and perceived Moscow's actions to be a "political struggle" German government spokesperson Christiane Hoffmann said Wednesday.
It is wrong to link the level of Russian gas supplies to Europe with the removal of EU sanctions against Moscow but the restrictions affected Gazprom’s delivery volumes, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said late in July.
Bloomberg reported that Russia planned to keep gas deliveries at a minimal level until the European Union lifts the sanctions it imposed on Moscow.
Peskov, however, clarified that this was due to the process of maintenance of various units being incredibly difficult due to the restrictions and sanctions that Europe has imposed.
Moscow had repeatedly warned that further maintenance delays could result in a complete shutdown of gas flows via the pipeline network.
Read: Politically, winter is coming: German Economy Minister
