French President Emmanuel Macron spent a surprisingly long time discussing the energy crisis with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on Monday afternoon.

At a hastily scheduled press conference in the Elysée Palace, Macron then announced a Franco-German agreement that can be reduced to the formula gas versus electricity.

Michael Wiegel

Political correspondent based in Paris.

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"Germany needs our gas and we need electricity, which is produced in the rest of Europe and especially in Germany," said Macron.

In the coming weeks, the necessary gas connections to Germany would therefore be completed in order to be able to supply Germany with gas.

“Whenever it is necessary,” said Macron, France will supply gas “out of solidarity” with Germany.

French gas storage facilities are 92 to 93 percent full, Macron said.

In return, the Chancellor had agreed to supply electricity to France.

Ironically, during the worst energy crisis in decades, 32 nuclear reactor plants fail due to maintenance and repair work or are only able to produce electricity to a reduced extent.

Macron stressed that this domestic power crisis has nothing to do with the Ukraine war.

He went to court harshly with those responsible for the electricity company EDF and did not accept the objection that he had given the wrong signal by closing the two reactors in Fessenheim.

He repeatedly emphasized the "German-French solidarity".

Macron has been under pressure since the German relief package

Conflict issues were also addressed in the video interview.

As Macron said when asked, he still doesn't think much of the MidCat gas pipeline project, which Chancellor Scholz supports.

The gas pipeline is intended to connect Spain with France and thereby allow further gas deliveries to Germany.

Macron stressed that there are already two pipelines between France and Spain that are only 53 percent utilized.

Chancellor Scholz did not put forward any new arguments in the conversation that would have convinced him of the need for the MidCat pipeline.

"There is no evidence that a third pipeline is needed," Macron said.

During a visit to Spain in mid-August, Scholz explicitly promoted the MidCat project.

Spain has six LNG terminals, or regasification plants, where liquefied petroleum gas is converted into natural gas.

Macron has been under pressure at home since the federal government's "relief package".

He has now announced that he is aiming for a European excess profit tax and said that this is also the Chancellor's goal.

The conversation with Scholz came about because Macron canceled an appointment at the first French offshore wind farm off Saint-Nazaire at short notice.

Energy supply is also expected to be the most important topic at the next Franco-German Council of Ministers, which is expected to take place in Rouen on October 26th.