Europe prepares for possible power outages during winter: Official

The European Union is preparing for emergency situations and power cuts due to the looming energy crisis in winter, the bloc’s crisis management commissioner said on Tuesday.

“During the coronavirus pandemic we’ve learned that we should prepare ourselves before a crisis begins, and therefore we’re now trying to predict future crises,” Janez Lenarcic told the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland media group.

The EU’s crisis management commissioner said they are working on various scenarios, and anticipate that member states may need EU relief assistance due to the energy shortages or power cuts in the coming months.

“If only one state, or a small number of member states are affected by a minor incident such as a blackout, other EU states can supply power generators through us, as it happens during natural disasters,” Lenarcic said.

“However, if a large number of countries are affected, and EU states have to cap their emergency aid deliveries, we are (EU Commission) in a position to cover the needs from our strategic reserve,” he added.

European countries are facing high energy prices and gas shortages due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

Russia has reduced supplies of natural gas to Europe, which the continent depended on for years to generate electricity and heat homes, in response to unprecedented Western sanctions.

Last month, it halted gas deliveries via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline indefinitely.​​​​​​​

• European Union
• Janez Lenarcic