BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany’s cabinet approved a draft bill on Wednesday to scrap a gas storage levy for all consumers in an effort to bring down energy costs.
After decades of relying on cheap Russian gas, Europe’s largest economy is grappling with high energy costs which are straining its export-driven, energy-intensive industries such as chemicals and metals production.
The levy was introduced in 2022 to help cover the high expense of replacing Russian gas after Moscow cut supplies.
While it was originally meant to be shared more broadly, pressure from Germany’s neighbours led Berlin to impose the charge solely on German consumers.
According to government estimates, abolishing the levy will provide roughly 3.4 billion euros ($3.93 billion)in relief to end customers, saving an average four-person household between 30 euros and 60 euros per year.
($1 = 0.8655 euros)
(Reporting by Riham Alkousaa and Holger Hansen, Editing by Madeline Chambers)
