The head of Engie does not expect gas shortages in France this winter

PARIS, Sep 2 – PRIME. France will not face gas shortages this winter, Engie CEO Catherine MacGregor has said.

“We are quite calm about the situation with gas in France,” she said on the radio station RTL.

According to McGregor, fuel consumption in the country has already decreased by 4-5%, and gas storage facilities are 93% full. At the same time, she noted, Europe’s energy system is under pressure.

“A priori, we will not face a shortage of gas this winter, but only if we do not need much more of it, given a very cold winter, or if other ways of generating electricity, except for gas, are weak,” the head of the company emphasized.

This week, Gazprom stopped deliveries of Engie fuel due to non-payment of July volumes. At the same time, as Figaro reported, in July the export of Russian gas to the French energy company has already decreased to 1.5 TWh per month.

In the summer, the French government launched an “energy sobriety” program aimed at reducing household electricity consumption by 10% until 2024 and preventing shortages this winter. According to media forecasts, the wholesale price of electricity in the country will reach a record level in 2023 and exceed one thousand euros per megawatt-hour, increasing by more than 1000% in a year.