The announcements from Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck underlined how Europe’s largest economy is central to efforts to slash exposure to Russia and punish its president, Vladimir Putin, for the invasion of Ukraine despite worries about the knock-on effects on consumers.

Habeck said the country can be “independent of Russian gas by all but a small portion” by as early as the summer of 2024. A ministry document said it was possible to reduce Russian gas to only 10 per cent of consumption by that time.

The ministry said it would cut its reliance on Russian oil by half by the end of the summer and come close to ending its dependence by the end of 2022. It added that Germany also aims to end its reliance on Russian coal by the autumn of this year.

Last month Germany suspended the Kremlin-backed Nord Stream 2 pipeline before gas started flowing through it as part of international sanctions against Russia.