Germans warned: Gas use is too high to avoid energy crisis

BERLIN (AP) — Germans are using too much gas now to avoid a potential energy shortage this winter. That’s the warning delivered Thursday by the head of Germany’s national network regulator. He says “gas consumption increased by too much last week.” There has been a reduction in natural gas flows from Russia amid the war in Ukraine. And German officials have urged citizens to cut back on gas usage and conserve energy heading into the colder months. But figures from the national network regulator show gas usage was nearly 10% higher last week than the average consumption from 2018 to 2021.