“Europe hit by record high energy prices”

In Europe, natural gas prices have increased nearly 600% this year due to concerns that current low levels of reserves will be insufficient for winter. In the United States, meanwhile, natural gas recently reached the stock market higher levels in 12 years.

On Wednesday (October 13th), the European Commission published a package of measures on rising energy prices, which have limited industrial production and left European consumers with higher heating bills as winter approaches.

German Energy firm E. The ON temporarily suspended new natural gas supply contracts for residences, the company said on Tuesday (October 12th), while suppliers across Europe are facing a major increase in demand after the end of the isolation measures due to the pandemic.

Germany currently has no lack of gas supply, a ministry spokesman said Wednesday, when asked whether the government would take action to fill the country's deposits in response to global price hikes.

The country's gas deposits are currently 75% packed and continue to be filled, the energy ministry's spokesman said, adding that the German gas storage capacity is higher than that of other countries like that. Britain.

Uncertainties on the impact that could bring increased energy prices to inflation and interest rate growth hit global stock markets and bonds in Europe.

With consumers facing a sharp increase in fuel bills in winter, energy prices have led the European Union's political agenda.

The EU, which imports 90% of its gas, notes that Russia had not followed the example of its other main supplier, Norway, in increasing supplies.

President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia was increasing gas supplies to Europe and was willing to stabilise the market.

But Russian gas company Gazprom's deputy director was quoted as saying that he was continuing to store natural gas in underground deposits in Russia. The Gazprom company also said this week it would give priority to its market instead of export sales, because it is expected to have a cold and snowy winter.

Some European parliamentarians have hinted that Gazprom has not increased gas supply in an effort to promote the quick approval of Nord Stream 2, a newly constructed pipeline that will send Russian gas to Germany. The United States and some European countries oppose the project, saying it will make the EU even more interdependent on Russian fuel.

Russia has repeatedly denied any political agenda.

EU ministers debated whether the union should start collective gas acquisitions, thus improving its negotiating position and creating strategic supply reserves.

EU Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson said that underground gas deposits were more than 75% packed across Europe and countries have enough to cover their winter needs, but that price hikes witnessed the need to move quickly to renewable sources.

However, gas reserves in the EU are at the lowest level of 10 years. /voa