The head of German energy company Eon believes the country must continue to rely on Russian natural gas in order to move away from coal and to curb energy prices. “We believe we need Russian gas. Full stop. Especially if we are now also relying more on gas because we want to switch off coal,” chief executive Leonhard Birnbaum said on Monday evening. Birnbaum also spoke in favour of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline that connects Russia with Germany, a project that Washington and other allies have called a strategic mistake on the part of Berlin. “In terms of energy economics, Nord Stream 2 is hel…