Germany Warns of Lehman-Like Contagion From Russian Gas Cuts (3)

Germany warned that Russia’s moves to slash Europe’s natural gas supplies risked sparking a collapse in energy markets, drawing a parallel to the role of Lehman Brothers in triggering the financial crisis.

With energy suppliers piling up losses by being forced to cover volumes at high prices, there’s a danger of a spillover effect for local utilities and their customers, including consumers and businesses, Economy Minister Robert Habeck said Thursday after raising the country’s gas risk level to the second-highest “alarm” phase.

Robert Habeck shows a graph featuring forecasts of gas-storage levels during a press conference in Berlin, on June 23.

Photographer: Tobias Schwarz/AFP/Getty Images

“If this minus gets so big that they can’t carry it anymore, the whole market is in ...