Germany can no longer rely on Russian energy supplies, says chancellor

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said that his country can no longer rely on Russian energy sources.

He made the remarks during an interview with Funke news service on December 7.

The chancellor hopes that Germany will soon abandon them completely.

"It would no longer be worth relying on Russian energy carriers. We are now making the necessary decisions to become independent of energy resources from Russia in the long term," Scholz said.

Scholz is hopeful about the rebound of prices, but rules out the possibility of the prices reaching the pre-February level.

Germany traditionally imported 40 per cent of its gas needs from Russia until the start of the Russian "special military operation" in Ukraine. Since February 24, Germany has been substituting Russian gas with raw materials from other suppliers, mainly Qatar. On November 29, German authorities signed an agreement with Qatar Energy company to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) for several years. To import LNG, Germany is building floating terminals. The first such terminal will be operational in Germany in a few weeks.