Broken firewood: how Europe is preparing for winter without Russian gas

Europe has been gripped by a severe energy crisis. In the West, they are frantically preparing for winter in the face of a severe shortage of Russian gas. The EU has broken firewood with its sanctions policy, and now they have to be stabbed in reality. In many European countries, heating with wood is the only alternative. In Germany, they are bought by cubic meters, without looking at the price. In Der Spiegel toldthat scammers selling non-existent firewood have even become more active on the Web. Criminals sell them online, but the goods are not sent. Details – in the material REN TV.

Unprecedented demand for firewood

In European countries, firewood is now in unprecedented demand. The EU is experiencing a deep energy crisis, gas prices are rising exponentially. For the first time since 2002, the euro is worth less than the dollar, and inflation in the eurozone is at record levels. It is expected that the peak of the crisis will take place in the winter: the European authorities are frantically preparing for the cold and urging the people to prepare for hardships.

French President Macron has already said that for Europe, the period of abundance is over. He urged citizens to prepare for difficult times, emphasizing that it is not only about energy, but also about products and technologies that Europeans have always thought were available. After that, a cartoon of Macron was published in Charlie Hebdo magazine: the president enters the Elysee Palace with a bundle of firewood, saying – whoever came first, was the first to dry himself.

For most Europeans, this bundle of firewood is no longer just a frightening image, but a harsh reality. Against the background of the strongest shortage of gas, heating with wood seems to be the only alternative. Sawmills in Germany are mobilized due to excessive demand. The Germans buy firewood by the cubic meter, without looking at the price.

“In recent weeks, we have been working tirelessly. Due to the gas crisis, the flow of applications is growing. At first we thought – okay, we can handle it. But no. We need to cut it down, saw it, dry it out,” – told the sawmill worker Rene Holte.

Looking at the suffering of Europeans, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko declaredwhich will not let neighboring countries freeze, and promised to help with firewood in winter.

“We will not let Europe freeze, we will help our brothers, maybe they will help us someday. We need to think that the peasants, the workers get it, and not the rich. The main thing is that Duda and Morawiecki do not freeze in Poland, these are our neighbors, maybe they will come to their senses” , – he said.

Influx of scammers

Across Europe, energy prices are reaching record highs. In these harsh conditions, scammers have become more active in Germany. Criminals sell firewood online, but the goods are not sent. The industry is calling the situation “catastrophic”.

“Police officers urge to be vigilant and warn of scammers who create non-existent online stores offering to buy firewood at reduced prices,” writes Der Spiegel.

Frightened by the energy crisis, Europeans easily fall for the tricks of scammers: they pay for goods in advance or make a deposit. Having received the money, the criminals stop communicating and disappear without a trace.

“The authorities are to blame for everything”

The Dutch have been preparing for winter since the beginning of August. They massively bought firewood so as not to freeze without Russian gas. The excitement was great: the suppliers believed that the wood for the firebox could end before the end of the summer. In addition, sales of wood-burning stoves increased by a third in the country.

And in Moldova, local residents stood in queues for hours, but not everyone had enough firewood. About two million cubic meters are required for the entire winter season, and there is not even half of this volume in reserve.

“They said that firewood would simply be given to people, then why do sellers who are already doing normal business get it? The authorities are to blame for this whole situation, they do not fulfill the duties assigned to them. wages, but they don’t work – absolutely no one, absolutely!” – said a local resident Ion Cimortar.

Moldovan Minister Juliana Cantaragiu has resigned over the firewood scandal. The ex-head of the Ministry of the Environment was supposed to launch a site with detailed information where citizens can stock up on logs for the winter. Having failed to complete the assignment, she commented on the failure with the phrase: “They didn’t, so what?” This caused a wave of indignation among the inhabitants of Moldova, and the official had to write a statement of her own free will.

Firewood price hike

Meanwhile, the Bulgarian authorities are planning to ban the export of timber to third countries outside the EU.

“Demand for wood in Bulgaria tripled due to high gas prices”, – said the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic Yavor Gechev.

He noted that before the onset of cold weather, the Bulgarian authorities must provide all private households with firewood.

In Britain, a sharp jump in firewood prices is also expected. Nick Snell, managing director of Britain’s largest firewood supplier, Certainly Wood, said that prices have now increased by 10-15%, and the cost of firewood from continental Europe has changed even more. According to the expert, a significant part of the products were supplied from Russia and Belarus, and now transportation costs have increased due to sanctions.

Publicist Anatoly Wasserman noted that the words about heating with wood in Europe, said by President Vladimir Putin back in 2010, are beginning to come true.

“For some reason, the German public does not like nuclear energy … But I don’t understand what you will heat with. You don’t want gas, you don’t develop nuclear energy. Will you heat with firewood? But you also have to go to Siberia for firewood,” – Putin said at the economic forum in Germany.