Delles told RTL on Friday: “With these targeted attacks on energy infrastructure we cannot rule out potential long-term or medium-term problems with the supply of diesel or kerosene in particular, on a global scale. Of course Luxembourg would be affected as well. We’ve already seen the impact on diesel prices which have gone up a lot this week. We still have plenty of reserves at the moment, and Europe is still receiving deliveries, but this doesn’t mean we won’t face potential shortages in future.”
The situation in the Middle East is very serious, Delles said after Friday’s government council, where the government covered the situation as it stands. It is the first time that energy production has been targeted by both warring parties. Israel attacked the Iranian South Pars gas field, the largest in the world, in the middle of the week. Iran then attacked an energy complex in Qatar.
The Minister of Energy currently sees no problem for end consumers with gas and electricity, even though prices are rising on the world market. This is due to the purchasing strategy of suppliers.
The government is preparing for the impact of rising prices on the index basket, according to Delles. “We stated in the coalition agreement that if two index tranches come close to each other, we will hold a tripartite. At the moment we are not in that situation. The latest calculations from Statec that are available are those that were made before the war in the Gulf region. This means that the next forecasts are being calculated from February. And if that happens, we will of course also take the necessary steps as a government. But I think that it is now important to prepare ourselves, what we as ministries will all do together, so that we can quickly implement the right solutions if necessary.”
