1. How full are Germany's gas storage levels right now?
Germany's more than 40 gas storage facilities are barely over half full, mainly due to the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz — currently the world's most critical energy chokepoint — because of the Iran war.
According to Gas Infrastructure Europe, the industry body for the continent's gas grid operators, Germany's underground natural gas stores stood at 50.14% on Wednesday. This is the lowest level for mid-August in several years.
Gas storage is around a quarter lower than on the same date last year and more than 45 percentage points lower than in 2023 and 2024, when the country made robust contingency plans due to Russia's war in Ukraine.
That conflict forced Germany, along with the rest of Europe, to reduce its reliance on Russian energy.
