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Politics

Germany Urges Thrifty Light Bulbs to Counter Russia Energy Risks

  • Country launches first coordinated energy savings push
  • Economy minister calls on citizens as energy prices skyrocket
Residential apartments in the Prenzlauer Berg district of Berlin. 

Residential apartments in the Prenzlauer Berg district of Berlin. 

Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg

Germany advised people to defrost their freezers regularly, change shower heads and switch office lighting to LEDs as the government tries to reduce a reliance on imported Russian energy that’s become a political liability.

“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine makes it painfully clear to us every day: We have to move away from fossil energy sources, and away from dependence and blackmail on Russian imports,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck, a member of the Green party, said in a statement launching the campaign.