Gas shortages in Germany: cities turning off hot water and heating

Hannover began to struggle with gas shortages. By official decision of the mayor’s office, the German city turned off hot water in public swimming pools and gyms. Public fountains will also be turned off. And public buildings will no longer be lit up at night. All this will help reduce energy consumption in the city by 15%.

Come autumn, energy saving measures will become even wider. Hannover will reduce the heating of public buildings and spaces from October to March. The only exception will be day care centers. All standard light bulbs will be replaced with LED lights. Portable air conditioners and heaters will be banned. And motion sensors will turn on the lights in public toilets and parking lots.

All these measures are a response to the reduction in energy supplies from Russia. On Monday, only 40% of the usual amount of gas flowed through the Nord Stream 1 pipes. This week, deliveries were halved again due to maintenance work. German Minister of economics Robert Habeck called this reason a farce and a simple pretext for political pressure. As well as declaring Gazprom an unreliable partner.

However, it is now much more important for Germany and all of Europe to prepare for a cold winter than to seek honesty from the Russian supplier. It was not only Hannover that began to struggle with gas shortages. Similar measures were approved in Munich, Leipzig, Cologne and Nuremberg. In Nuremberg, three of the four indoor public swimming pools have already closed.

Earlier this week the European Union made a collective decision to consume 15% less gas due to the escalating energy crisis.