Berlin warns of difficult months due to lack of gas supplies and rules out operating Nord Stream 2

Germany is in anticipation of a possible interruption in Russian gas supplies to the country, which will negatively affect many services, as the government warned of "difficult months" amid the exclusion of the possibility of operating the Nord Stream 2 pipeline soon.

Berlin announced, on Monday, that it will have " difficult months " in terms of providing gas supplies to the country.

"German Chancellor Olaf Scholz rules out the possibility of operating the Nord Stream 2 pipeline to meet the lack of gas supplies in the coming months," German government spokesman Stephen Hebestreet said in a press statement.

The Nord Stream project is a double pipeline that passes under the waters of the Baltic Sea to transport Russian gas to Europe.

Earlier, the German government confirmed that the project could not be used because it was "not approved".

And last February, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced the suspension of the project in the wake of Moscow's official recognition of the independence of Donetsk and Luhansk regions from Ukraine, which were under the control of pro-Russian separatists, amid widespread international rejection.

On Monday, the German Tenants Association warned that millions of citizens will not be able to afford increased energy costs over the coming winter.

The association's president, Lux Siebenkoten, told the local newspaper Der Tages Spiegel that higher gas prices would have a huge impact on low-income families, who are "struggling to cope with the rising cost of living".

This comes as cities in Germany began imposing preventive measures to save energy, as they resorted to turning off the lights and imposing cold baths in public swimming pools, at a time when the country is racing to reduce its energy consumption in the face of the looming Russian gas crisis, according to the Guardian newspaper .

Germany uses most of its gas imports to heat homes and power its large industry. But while an energy contingency plan launched in June enables utility companies to pass on higher gas prices to customers, most private households in Germany pay their gas bills in set advance payments and have yet to experience the kind of massive increases that are being offered. It will change consumer behaviour.

On July 25, Russia announced a reduction in gas supplies from the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to Europe by about 20 percent of its capacity.

Russia supplied Europe with 41 percent of its natural gas needs, before the percentage fell to less than 30 percent at the present time, amid European fears of a complete cut of gas before the onset of winter.