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Gas or post
Russia wants to build the third branch of the gas pipeline along the bottom of the Baltic. Germany, however, does not want this, even despite the energy deficit. But both Dmitry Medvedev and Angel Merkel really want to remain at the head of their states. So gas agreements once again fell victim to a big policy.
Of course, the topic of supplying Europe with gas always comes into view of any Russian-German negotiations. The St. Petersburg Dialog forum in Ganover, which was visited by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and the Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, was no exception.
Russia is extremely proud of its gas supplies to Germany. “In the fall, we put into operation the North Stream gas pipeline, which will increase the reliability of supplies and strengthen the energy safety of Europe as a whole,” Dmitry Medvedev said at the forum. “We must also look into the future, look at the strategic alliances that have already developed at how they will change,” the president said.
The forum participants asked the Russian president whether Gazprom could fully ensure the supply of Russian gas to Europe. “Gas is really enough, do not hesitate,” Medvedev answered for prolonged applause.
Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel also stated that "the gas volumes required in Germany are growing with seven -mini steps." “The share of renewable energy sources should be doubled, but still a certain deficit will remain, and our goal is to increase energy efficiency,” Merkel noted, emphasizing that “we are not talking about an uncontrolled increase in volumes, but an increase in the volume to reasonable values that can cover Gazprom.”
Angel Merkel and Dmitry Medvedev. Photo: Press Service of the President of the Russian Federation According to the Chancellor, the needs of the country's economy after revising the NPP program due to an accident in Japan can grow by 20 GW, but the German government intends to replenish the lack of energy by increasing the energy efficiency of consumption and the development of renewable energy sources. In other words: Germany does not really want to buy more Russian gas yet.
But Russia really wants to sell it more. The First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, co-chair of the St. Petersburg Dialog forum, Viktor Zubkov, assured that Gazprom was ready to increase deliveries to Germany by a third. “If we are talking about 30 - 35 percent of the additional volume of gas, this is also not bad,” he said. “The capabilities of Gazprom are unlimited to Europe in the supply of Russian gas to Europe,” Zubkov said.
The statements of the Russian president and the German chancellor, of course, is the question of the fate of the third branch of the North Stream gas pipeline. Two branches of the Northern Stream, with a capacity of 27.5 billion cubic meters each, have already been agreed with German partners and “on the way”. The first branch is almost ready, they plan to complete the construction of the second next year.
“There will be the second thread of the North Stream gas pipeline, in line the South Stream, and maybe another line of Northern Stream,” said Putin in Magnitogorsk. Merkel unequivocally made it clear that so many Russian gas of Germany is not yet necessary.
The gas question is the most serious in Russian-German relations for today. Dependence on his deliveries is strongly worried about German society. Against the backdrop of the rejection of the energy of the nuclear power plant (the current government was quite positive about atomic energy, but only before the accident at the Fukushima NPP in Japan), the problem of gas dependence on Russia arises even more acutely. This concern cannot be ignored by German politicians.
Moreover, in Germany de facto started the first stage of the election campaign. The elections will take place only in 2013, but the other day, Angel Merkel said that she was ready to go to the Chancellor’s election for the third time. “We still have a lot of projects ahead. What we have already begun to carry out, we must take step by step to the end, ”the Chancellor said. Meanwhile, potential candidates from Social Democrats are ahead of Merkel in ratings.
In Russia, gas problems in the domestic agenda are not felt so acutely. However, the Russian president once again confirmed that he is not going to leave politics. “We somehow spoke with an angel that once we will have to preside on this forum. And we agreed that this would not be soon, ”he said. The results of the forum, thus, are formulated extremely simply: "Merkel - Chancellor, Medvedev - president, there will be no third branch."