Representative Image Photographer: Alex Kraus/Bloomberg

The government is looking at applying a set of measures, including loans, taking an equity stake and also passing part of the surge in costs onto customers, said two people familiar with the talks.

Uniper declined to comment. The company, which is one of the biggest importers of Russian gas, said last week it was in talks with the government to secure liquidity. Its shares sank 28% on Monday, taking the company’s market value to 4.14 billion euros.

Germany, which has built its economic model on cheap Russian gas, is wrestling with a squeeze in supplies and surging fuel prices as Moscow punishes Europe for its support for Ukraine. German Economy Minister Robert Habeck has warned the gas crunch risks triggering a collapse in the market, similar to the role of Lehman Brothers in the financial crisis.

As part of its plan, the government is preparing legislation that would enable the state to take stakes in struggling energy companies, according to two senior officials. It will also allow for at least part of the cost of rising gas prices to be passed on to consumers. Analysts estimate that curbed Russian flows are costing Uniper 30 million euros a day.

The cabinet is set to approve the bill on today, followed by the upper and lower houses of parliament on July 8.

Officials are moving fast ahead of the next milestone: the key Nord Stream pipeline is due to shut for maintenance on July 11, adding pressure to already fraught markets. German officials have raised the prospect that Moscow may never reopen the pipe after the maintenance, leaving the country without its main source of gas.

While Uniper represents the most urgent concern, the broader economy is also in peril as the government is trying to contain the fallout for consumers and industry. Plans have been drafted for rationing, with Germany’s vast industry poised to suffer shortages. Habeck has warned that worse is to come.

“We aren’t dealing with erratic decisions but with economic warfare, completely rational and very clear,” Habeck said on Saturday. “After a 60 percent reduction, the next one logically follows.”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz signaled at the weekend the government could use bailout tools created during the pandemic to rescue Lufthansa in the current crisis. Germany issued loans to the airline and took a 20 percent stake. It came with a ban on dividends and management bonuses.