In lowering the outlook for the Czech government on Fri. from stable to negative, Moody’s said that, “Adequate gas for the heating needs of households and usage in critical infrastructure would likely be prioritized under a rationing plan, leaving the industry sector in a vulnerable position.” The four key concepts in that one sentence are inadequate gas, rationing, prioritization and industrial vulnerability. A survey by the Czech Chamber of Commerce found that 63% of companies don’t have enough information about what a state of emergency would mean in terms of availability of gas for their operations. In response to Moody’s rating action on Fri., Industry Min. Jozef Síkela issued a PR tweet that got a lot of likes but that didn’t directly address any of the main concerns. He also told Czech TV that in the event of a state of emergency, he would be able to ban the export of gas in Czech storage facilities, but he said nothing about how that drastic step is covered under the agreement he reached with Germany on energy security. Instead of trying to avoid a state of gas emergency, Síkela seems to be trying to create one.

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