Europe’s biggest buyer of Russian gas is losing tens of millions of euros a day as it tries to make up the gap with much more expensive gas bought on the open market, unable to pass on the additional costs to customers. CEO Klaus-Dieter Maubach told reporters that Uniper “cannot tolerate [the current situation] for a long time” and that it may have to start pumping natural gas from its storage facilities next week, further reducing supplies needed for the coming winter. The company said on Friday that it has “applied to the German government for stabilization measures” through which it will seek to offset some of its increased costs. The German parliament had earlier pushed through changes to the country’s energy security law to allow special pricing mechanisms to be imposed on consumers. Maubach did not say how big Uniper’s bailout should be, but German politicians have suggested it could reach 9 billion euros. The executive said Uniper could lose up to 10 billion euros this year. Uniper’s proposal to the German government also seeks to extend an undrawn €2bn credit facility first agreed with state-owned bank KfW earlier this year when Uniper found itself on the wrong side of energy price hedges. The plan “contains equity elements that would lead to a relevant federal government interest in Uniper SE,” the company added. Maubach did not specify what size such a stake would ultimately be, but said: “We’re not talking about 5 percent or 10 percent, I can say that much.” German Finance Minister Robert Habeck said his government was “working as usual” to help Uniper. “The specific form of support will be subject to negotiation and will then be decided. Politically, one thing is clear: we will not allow a systemically important company to go bankrupt and thereby cause turbulence in the global energy market,” he added. Uniper’s main shareholder Fortum, which owns nearly 80 percent of the utility, will also consider restructuring the company and “establishing a security of supply company under the ownership of the German government,” Uniper said. The proposed bailout comes as natural gas flows from Russia are down 60 percent from their typical capacity, with scheduled maintenance on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline scheduled to begin next week, further curtailing supplies. German officials have warned that Russia may use the pipeline repairs as an excuse to cut off gas supplies permanently in retaliation for sanctions imposed on Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine. Such a scenario would make it impossible for Germany to fill its natural gas storage facilities to the targeted 90% by November, forcing the country to ration businesses through the winter. The shortage will also affect gas transport to France, Austria and the Czech Republic. “Plans to amend the Energy Security Act will enable higher gas prices to be passed on evenly across all gas customers in the form of a levy,” BDO lawyer Christian Hubbell said of one of the options the government now has.
