Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1474118
2 NEWS 21.7.2022 EU asks nations to cut gas by 15% until spring fearing abrupt Russian cut-off MATTHEW VELLA THE European Union is facing the risk of an abrupt cut in gas supply from Russia, president Ursula von der Leyen said, accusing Russia of weaponing gas exports. With almost half of EU states affected by reduced has deliveries, Brussels has called on all European capitals warning against a potential full cut-off of Russian gas and to voluntary reduce gas con- sumption. "We have to prepare for a full disrup- tion of Russian gas... it is a likely scenario that there will be a full cut-off, and this would affect every single member state in the EU powerhouse," Von der Ley- en said, days after having clinched new supply agreements for gas from Algeria and Azerbaijan. e EC yesterday proposed a new, legislative tool and a European Gas De- mand Reduction Plan, to reduce gas use in Europe by 15% until next spring. e emergency regulation sets a target for all member states to voluntarily re- duce gas demand by 15% between 1 Au- gust 2022 and 31 March 2023. "I know this is a big ask for the whole of the EU but it is necessary to protect us," Von der Leyen said. But the EC could also declare, after consulting European governments, a 'Union Alert' on security of supply, and then impose a mandatory gas demand reduction. e Union Alert can be trig- gered when there is a substantial risk of a severe gas shortage or an exceptionally high gas demand. Gas flows from Russia to the Baltic countries, Poland, Bulgaria, and Finland have completely stopped, while supply to Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands and Italy has been recently reduced – prompting the EU executive to argue that "there is no reason to believe this pattern will change." Under the 'Save Gas for a Safe Winter' plan, the EC will try to recover a short- fall of 30-40 billion cubic metres of gas. "is would bring us safely through the winter – the quicker the act, the more we save, the safer we are," Von der Leyen said. "All member states will suffer the consequences of a disruption of the sin- gle market if gas is cut off, which is why all member states should contribute to the saving and storing of gas; energy sol- idarity is a core principle of our Treaty." Vice-president and climate commis- sioner Frans Timmermans said consum- ers and businesses should understand the ramifications of reducing consump- tion of fossil fuels ahead of Europe's transition to renewables. "Do we need to have the lights on in empty buildings and offices, or shop- fronts at night? Do we need to have our air-conditioners set at 20-degrees? Of course it might reduce a bit of our com- fort, but it might reduce a lot of our con- sumption. None of it will be easy, but if we act now we have a choice and we can remain masters of our destiny – if we give up a few comforts today, we avoid a full-blown crisis next winter," Timmer- mans said. What exact measures and criteria are Member States advised to put in place to reduce gas demand? Private households fall within the defi- nition of "protected customers" under the existing EU security of supply reg- ulation. ey would be the last to be affected by shortages and in absence of other unforeseen events, they would not be impacted directly by large scale dis- ruptions from Russia. But households play a very important role in reducing unnecessary consump- tion and avoiding waste of energy, and are encouraged to lower their heating or cooling, air drying laundry, switching off unnecessary lights, and improving home insulation where possible. Individual steps, when taken together, add up to significant savings: a lower thermostat temperature for heating alone can save up to 10 bcm of gas per year. e Gas Demand Reduction Plan underlines the potential savings from reduced demand for heating and cool- ing – for example through information campaigns or by limiting heating and cooling, especially in large buildings, and avoiding outdoor terrace heating. e plan hinges on the principle of solidarity. Each member state will have to reduce its national gas consumption to contribute to address a gap between supply and demand in the EU, irrespec- tive of where that gap emerges or is the worst. Measures will be designed at the na- tional level. In a situation of emergency, effective and prompt solidarity would be greatly facilitated by having bilateral solidarity agreements foreseen under the Regula- tion on gas security of supply in place, clarifying the technical, legal and finan- cial arrangements to provide gas to the legally protected customers of neigh- bouring countries in case of crisis. Climate commissioner Frans Timmermans (left) and EC president Ursula von der Leyen at the Commissioners College THE digital transformation lies at the heart of today's rapidly changing busi- ness environment, especially within the retail industry. e experience of a glob- al pandemic has forced the retail sector to digitalise itself quickly to meet con- sumer expectations and secure its posi- tion and future in the global market. In this context, the Malta Business Bu- reau has embarked on the ToRRe pro- ject, short for 'Building Towards Retail Resilience', financed by the Erasmus+ programme. Its main goal is to help the retail sector reinvent itself in an increasingly digital world by providing it with the necessary tools to do so – digital skills. Digital skills not only expand the sector's business reach but also allow it to adapt to the digital transformation challenge, which has completely redefined the market. MBB CEO Joe Tanti said that the local retail sector is currently undergoing a rapid transformation – the digital trans- formation, propelled by the pandemic and the geopolitical uncertainty. "Retail businesses are facing the chal- lenge of competing in a highly digital- ised market in which digital skills are a must," he said. In collaboration with five other organi- sations based in Bulgaria, Ireland, Spain, and Malta, MBB is pushing to close the digital skills gap in the retail industry to ensure that it can meet the ever-chang- ing and progressive expectations of to- day's market". As part of the project's research, MBB conducted surveys and interviews with both retail employers and employees as well as local experts. e survey results show that there is an evident lack of awareness on the digital skills gap that is present within the lo- cal retail sector, with only 36.8% of the respondents acknowledging such a fact. When asked for the most important digital skills that are needed for the fu- ture of the retail industry, digital mar- keting, social media, cybersecurity, online selling, and business intelligence emerged as the key skills based on the respondents' results. Still, the fact that many the respond- ents were employees within the retail in- dustry (78.9%), indicates a need to build retailers' capacity to prepare for the dig- ital transformation. Chris Vassallo Cesareo, Managing Di- rector of Domestica Ltd, with 20 years of experience in the retail sector, described the current skills gap in the local retail industry as a "learning process" to which retailers must adapt to so that custom- ers' needs are met. "Indeed, "Covid-19 has pushed us to become more tech-savvy to meet con- sumer demands," he said. Confirming the importance of increas- ing digital skills, EY Partner Gilbert Guillaumier stated that once the pan- demic mandated that shops had to close their doors and establish an online pres- ence, having a digital presence became a "survival requirement" for certain busi- nesses. He also explained that despite recent shifts to online shopping, a number of local retailers are observing that physi- cal stores remain an important element in the retail experience. e knowledge gathered from the re- porting phase of the project will feed into the online learning module which the partners will be discussing in the next stages of the project. e ultimate aim is to increase aware- ness and renew knowledge of basic yet fundamental digital skills for retail busi- ness owners and workers alike. MBB embarks on a digital transformation project for retail sector