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UPDATED: What does the government’s ‘gas alert’ mean for Austria?

Following a crisis summit on Tuesday, Austria's 'gas alert' will remain at the early warning level. But the government is appealing to businesses to save energy and switch to alternative sources where possible.

Published: 30 March 2022 17:10 CEST
Updated: 5 July 2022 15:37 CEST
radiator
A radiator seen up close. Photo: ri / Pixabay

Energy Minister Leonore Gewessler has confirmed Austria’s warning system in the gas emergency plan will be not raised to the alert level yet, but has instead made an appeal to businesses to start planning for the autumn and winter season now.

The announcement was made at a press conference following a crisis summit on Tuesday July 5th in Vienna, reports Der Standard.

Gewessler cited industrial and power plants as those that need to start making preparations and suggested they should switch to alternative energy sources, such as oil, if possible.

“Saving energy is always smart,” said Gewessler, before emphasising how energy saving practices are also beneficial for the climate and the wallet.

Appealing to the general population, Gewessler told households to prepare for the coming winter season by servicing radiators and thermal baths and removing cladding from heating systems.

In the meantime, Gewessler said the Austrian government is negotiating with alternative (non-Russian) gas suppliers, adding that further details will be announced when the negotiations are complete.

Austria activated the early warning system – which is the first level of a three-step emergency plan – for the country’s gas supply back in March.

At the time, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said “everything will be done to ensure the gas supply for Austria’s households and businesses”.

BREAKING: Austria activates alert system over gas supply

Why was the alert activated? 

The alert was activated after Russia announced that future gas deliveries can only be paid for with Rubles as a consequence of international sanctions resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

While many in the west refused to pay in rubles, pointing out that payments in other currencies are allowed under the original contractual arrangements, there were fears the announcement could lead to a drop in gas supply. 

Initially, these fears were not realised, but in recent weeks the amount of gas being supplied to Austria from Russia has reduced.

Austria’s reserve tanks are currently at 46 percent. However, there is planned maintenance work on the pipeline from mid to late July, which Gewessler has described as “another decision point”, according to Der Standard.

What is the emergency system?

The emergency system is a three-tiered plan, with several repercussions if a new level is reached. 

The stages of the emergency plan are as follows. 

I – Early warning level : This level is reached if there are concrete and reliable indications that the gas supply could deteriorate. 

II – Alert level : If the gas supply situation actually deteriorates, the second level will be declared. Businesses are encouraged to use alternatives to natural gas whenever possible. 

III – Emergency level : Gas can no longer be supplied and the current demand can no longer be met. Measures for industry, such as substituting natural gas with other energies as energy control measures, are to be put in place. 

What does this mean for me?

As yet, the impact will not reach average Austrians. 

The government confirmed to Austrian media that rationing of gas will only start at level three. 

The main impact of the alert is that the situation will be “monitored more closely” Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) said. 

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UKRAINE

Two years of war: Ukrainian refugees face lasting exile in Austria

Iryna, Maryna, Katya -- three generations from one family -- fled their home in southern Ukraine for Austria just after the war started, hoping to return quickly.

Published: 12 February 2024 11:43 CET
Two years of war: Ukrainian refugees face lasting exile in Austria

But two years later, these hopes are fading.

Just a few days ago, a fresh attack blew off the roofs of many buildings intheir home city of Mykolaiv. “Ukraine’s future is not clear. I think that the war will not stop, even in one or two years,” said Maryna Troshchenko, 43, while showing photos of the damage sent by relatives still living in the port city.

Troshchenko, her mother and her daughter, who all now live in Vienna, are among six million Ukrainian refugees, marking the biggest exodus since World War II, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Germany and Poland host the largest populations, with about one million Ukrainian refugees in each country.

Incessant bombings and a lack of progress on the front make their return in the short term increasingly improbable.

‘Started from scratch’

After months of housing problems and rejected CVs, Troshchenko finally landed a job in a supermarket, enabling the trio to move into their own apartment this year.

“I started from scratch” at the bakery department before being promoted to head cashier, said the former purchasing director, who did not speak a word of German when she arrived. “We are happy to have been able to accomplish so much in two years,” the divorcee added.

Her daughter, Katya, 17, has managed to obtain her Ukrainian school graduation certificate while attending a Viennese high school, from where she is eyeing to graduate next year.

Mother Maryna Troshchenko (L) from southern Ukraine with her daughter Katya Troshchenko (R) and grandmother Iryna Simonova pose for photos in their apartment in Vienna, Austria on February 8, 2024. (Photo by Alex HALADA / AFP)

Katya’s grandmother, Iryna Simonova, 64, meanwhile, has been able to find a volleyball team to practice her favourite sport and has made friends. But tears stream from her eyes as soon as she thinks of her home country as she recalls leaving behind her mother, who at 87 refused to join them.

‘Build a future’

At refugee help organisation Diakonie in Austria, workers note that many Ukrainian refugees have decided to try to settle after being paralysed by the “dilemma of waiting” to return home.

“For a long time, it was very difficult for them to decide how to proceed further,” Sarah Brandstetter, deputy at Diakonie’s Ukrainian refugee advice centre, told AFP.

“Two years later, the situation has changed — people are now planning to stay in the country. They have their children here in schools. They want to build a future for themselves,” she added.

But especially mothers of young children who find themselves alone to take care of them continue to struggle.

The initial surge of solidarity is also running out of steam in some places.

In Austria — which hosts some 80,000 Ukrainian refugees — “the increase of energy costs and high inflation was a game changer”, according to Christoph Riedl, a migration and integration expert at Diakonie.

In neighbouring Germany, anti-migration discourse is also on the rise amid a spike in the number of asylum-seekers from outside of Europe, weighing heavily on reception capacities.

Demographic challenge

Until March 2025, under EU rules, Ukrainians are eligible for temporary protection, a status allowing them access to the labour market, housing, and social and medical assistance. But what is next, experts wonder. Riedl said the EU should agree now on a
lasting status.

“When a conflict lasts for two or three years, people change their minds. It’s a reality check. They integrate, they have a new life,” he told AFP.

Faced with a real demographic challenge, Ukrainian authorities fear the massive exodus — and in contrast to other nations want refugees to be able to return.

A photo taken in Vienna, Austria on February 8, 2024 shows a sign at the entrance to the Ukrainian refugee advice centre of the Diakonie help organisation. Workers note that many Ukrainian refugees have decided to try to settle after being paralysed by the “dilemma of waiting” to return home. (Photo by Alex HALADA / AFP)

“We find a somewhat specific situation in Ukraine — a country at war, which also wants to maintain the greatest possible connection with its population,” Philippe Leclerc, UNHCR Director for Europe, told AFP.

Katya Troshchenko too insists on the importance “for young Ukrainians to come back to rebuild Ukraine, to build a new, modern country, which will be in EU too”.

However — still traumatised by the nights in air raid shelters at the start of the war — she is “afraid” to return.   

“I don’t want to see how it’s absolutely ruined by Russians, and I don’t want to see my ruined childhood,” she said. And she has no illusions — she will probably have to stay in Vienna for her university studies.

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