German Industry Warns It Could Shut Down Entirely without Russian Gas

July 20, 2022 (EIRNS)—Some of Germany’s largest industrial giants are warning that they may have to shut down entirely if they stop receiving Russian natural gas exports, the July 18 Financial Times reported. An RT summary of that FT account reported: “according to the publication, Germany’s largest steelmaker ThyssenKrupp and the world’s largest chemicals company BASF have both warned that without sufficient natural gas supply, their factories could be forced to idle or shut down completely, and could even suffer technical damage. ‘[Without Russian gas supplies,] we have to stop [production] immediately, from 100 to zero,’ said Petr Cingr, the chief executive of SKW Stickstoffwerke Piesteritz, Germany’s largest ammonia producer and a key European fertilizer supplier.

The danger is across the board. “Without Russian gas, Germany will experience a severe fall in industrial output, which will trigger a ‘deep recession’ with almost 6% wiped off GDP by the end of next year, analysts at Swiss bank UBS told FT.”

Meanwhile European energy companies have built up a staggering $1.7 trillion in debt, a 50% increase since the beginning of 2020. A number of major such companies, including Germany’s Uniper, are awaiting multibillion-dollar government bailouts, or else they will have to close their doors.