BERLIN (Reuters) – Mercedes-Benz saw no impact from the stop in gas deliveries from Russia to Poland and Bulgaria on its plants, but was nonetheless working on ways to reduce its gas demand, the company said on Wednesday.
An abrupt stop to gas deliveries from Russia would impact production, with natural gas still used in particular for heating and paint shops, Chief Financial Officer Harald Wilhelm said in a press call following first quarter results.
“Of course we are working on how to reduce demand, but also on changing the energy source as quickly as possible,” he said.
Mercedes-Benz has a plant in Jawor, Poland, and in Kecksemet, Hungary.
Russian energy giant Gazprom said on Wednesday it had halted gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland for failing to pay for gas in roubles, the Kremlin’s toughest response yet to sanctions imposed by the West over the conflict in Ukraine.
(Reporting by Victoria Waldersee, Editing by Miranda Murray)
