"Germany to Prioritize Coal Over People on Trains... Energy Crisis Deepens"

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The German government, facing an escalating energy crisis due to reduced supplies of Russian natural gas, is reportedly prioritizing coal transportation over passenger trains on railways. This is seen as a desperate measure considering the rapidly increasing demand for heating energy starting this fall.

On the 21st (local time), Bloomberg News cited the German media outlet 'Welt am Sonntag,' reporting that the German government is preparing a plan to prioritize coal transportation over passengers to increase coal shipments via rail, and it is expected to receive official approval soon.

Bloomberg noted that it is unusual for the German government, which has traditionally prioritized passenger transport over freight, to shift to prioritizing coal transport, reflecting the severity of Germany's energy situation.

Germany, which has heavily depended on Russian natural gas, is pushing to reactivate coal-fired power plants as one of the recent measures to secure energy amid Russia’s significant reduction of gas supplies in response to Western sanctions. Despite domestic and international criticism that this represents a setback to its previously pursued coal phase-out and eco-friendly policies, Germany plans to operate coal plants again to replace about 1-2% of its existing natural gas consumption ahead of the critical heating season this fall.

However, due to severe heatwaves and droughts causing water levels to drop and disrupting coal transportation via major rivers such as the Rhine, Germany is reportedly seeking to expand coal shipments by rail.

Earlier, the Russian state-owned gas company Gazprom reduced natural gas supplies to Europe, including Germany, through the key pipeline 'Nord Stream 1' to 40% of capacity from mid-June and further cut it to 20% on the 27th of last month. Germany’s dependence on Russian natural gas was as high as 55% around February, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.