The Netherlands joined Germany and Austria on Monday when it announced the country would revert to coal power to address power shortages..The government now finds itself seeking solutions to energy challenges presented by the crisis initiated after Russia's invasion of Ukraine..The Dutch said they would lift all previous restrictions on their fossil fuel-powered power stations. The facilities had been previously limited to a little more than a third of output capacity..Berlin and Vienna made similar announcements Sunday as Moscow slashed its gas supplies to European countries.."The cabinet decided to immediately withdraw the restriction on production for coal-fired power stations from 2002 to 2024," Dutch Climate and Energy Minister Rob Jetten told journalists in The Hague..The Dutch minister said his country had "prepared this decision with our European colleagues over the past few days.".Despite its policy reversal on Monday, Germany said the country still intends to shut down its coal-powered plants by 2030.."The 2030 coal exit date is not in doubt at all," economy ministry spokesman Stephan Gabriel Haufe said at a news conference..The target was "more important than ever," he said..Russia's invasion of Ukraine caused global energy prices to skyrocket, raising serious concerns about adequate supplies in the future if gas deliveries were to be halted altogether..Poland, Bulgaria, Finland, and the Netherlands are among some of the countries Russian energy giant Gazprom has already denied deliveries..Germany's heavy reliance on Russian gas and oil rendered it vulnerable as Moscow looks to undermine hostile European countries..The Netherlands relies on Russia for around 15% of gas supplies compared to the EU average of 40%..The Dutch government said it still has serious concerns, though. "I want to emphasize that at the moment there's no acute gas shortage," Dutch minister Jetten said. "However, more countries are now being squeezed [by Russia.] That worries us.".The Netherlands government stated it would be making an "urgent appeal" to its commercial sector to minimize energy usage as much as possible ahead of the winter..Gazprom’s freeze on deliveries to Germany via the Nord Stream gas pipeline last week prompted the country to re-commission its coal plants..The Russian gas giant claimed the halt in gas deliveries was due to a technical issue. The German government, however, said the halt in supply was a strategic political move..German Economy Minister Robert Habeck, a Green party politician, said Germany’s need to return to coal-fired power was "bitter, but indispensable for reducing gas consumption.".Austria's government announced Sunday it would reopen a decommissioned coal power station to mitigate energy challenges resulting from Russian gas shortages..The European Commission noted Monday "some of the existing coal capacities might be used longer than initially expected" because of the devolving energy situation in Europe.."We know the energy mix and the plans of member states will adjust slightly because we are in an unexpected situation," commission spokesman Tim McPhie said at a press conference..Germany, Europe's largest economy, managed to reduce its share of its natural gas supplied by Russia from 55% before the invasion to 35%.
The Netherlands joined Germany and Austria on Monday when it announced the country would revert to coal power to address power shortages..The government now finds itself seeking solutions to energy challenges presented by the crisis initiated after Russia's invasion of Ukraine..The Dutch said they would lift all previous restrictions on their fossil fuel-powered power stations. The facilities had been previously limited to a little more than a third of output capacity..Berlin and Vienna made similar announcements Sunday as Moscow slashed its gas supplies to European countries.."The cabinet decided to immediately withdraw the restriction on production for coal-fired power stations from 2002 to 2024," Dutch Climate and Energy Minister Rob Jetten told journalists in The Hague..The Dutch minister said his country had "prepared this decision with our European colleagues over the past few days.".Despite its policy reversal on Monday, Germany said the country still intends to shut down its coal-powered plants by 2030.."The 2030 coal exit date is not in doubt at all," economy ministry spokesman Stephan Gabriel Haufe said at a news conference..The target was "more important than ever," he said..Russia's invasion of Ukraine caused global energy prices to skyrocket, raising serious concerns about adequate supplies in the future if gas deliveries were to be halted altogether..Poland, Bulgaria, Finland, and the Netherlands are among some of the countries Russian energy giant Gazprom has already denied deliveries..Germany's heavy reliance on Russian gas and oil rendered it vulnerable as Moscow looks to undermine hostile European countries..The Netherlands relies on Russia for around 15% of gas supplies compared to the EU average of 40%..The Dutch government said it still has serious concerns, though. "I want to emphasize that at the moment there's no acute gas shortage," Dutch minister Jetten said. "However, more countries are now being squeezed [by Russia.] That worries us.".The Netherlands government stated it would be making an "urgent appeal" to its commercial sector to minimize energy usage as much as possible ahead of the winter..Gazprom’s freeze on deliveries to Germany via the Nord Stream gas pipeline last week prompted the country to re-commission its coal plants..The Russian gas giant claimed the halt in gas deliveries was due to a technical issue. The German government, however, said the halt in supply was a strategic political move..German Economy Minister Robert Habeck, a Green party politician, said Germany’s need to return to coal-fired power was "bitter, but indispensable for reducing gas consumption.".Austria's government announced Sunday it would reopen a decommissioned coal power station to mitigate energy challenges resulting from Russian gas shortages..The European Commission noted Monday "some of the existing coal capacities might be used longer than initially expected" because of the devolving energy situation in Europe.."We know the energy mix and the plans of member states will adjust slightly because we are in an unexpected situation," commission spokesman Tim McPhie said at a press conference..Germany, Europe's largest economy, managed to reduce its share of its natural gas supplied by Russia from 55% before the invasion to 35%.
