Germany years away from replacing Russian gas – official

Must read

Putin’s war machine risks running out of fuel, so Russia is banning the export of gasoline and diesel

Now 575 days into his war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin has halted virtually all exports of gasoline and diesel out of the country to...

Coinbase pursued FTX Europe acquisition as it looked to expand its overseas derivatives business

In its pursuit to build out crypto derivatives offerings worldwide, Coinbase explored an acquisition of FTX’s European entity following the exchange’s November bankruptcy, according...

Planet Fitness’s ousted CEO still doesn’t know why he was fired

Up until last week, things seemed to be going pretty well for Chris Rondeau. The CEO of Planet Fitness was overseeing a growing empire:...

Beer could run low as climate crisis decimates Europe’s barley crops, warns the CEO of Japanese brewer Asahi

Beer could be facing an existential crisis as climate change looks set to hammer Europe’s vital barley supplies, a major brewing chief has said....

The country’s floating LNG terminals will reach the necessary capacity no sooner than 2026, the Economy Ministry estimates

Germany is a long way from fully substituting Russian pipeline gas supplies with liquefied natural gas (LNG), estimates by the country’s Economy Ministry show.

According to a document published on the Bundestag website, Germany imported 55 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Russian natural gas in 2021. The document also shows that Germany’s new Floating Storage and Regasification Units (FSRUs), which are currently being installed in a number of ports to allow the import of LNG, may reach a similar capacity no sooner than in 2026.

By 2030, those capacities are projected to increase to 76.5 bcm, or about 80% of total German gas consumption in 2021. However, the ministry notes that even once the terminals go online, the global LNG market may not have enough capacity to cover additional demand, which could push these dates further.

The ministry notes that the country’s gas storage facilities are currently well-filled, and there is no immediate danger of gas shortages. However, it acknowledges that once the stores run dry later this year and the time comes to refill them for the next heating season, Germany may face shortages. According to calculations by the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, Germany faces a supply gap of around 30 bcm of gas this year, and the FRSUs are projected to produce less than half of this volume by the end of 2023.

The truth is, there won’t be enough in the next three to four years of LNG production capacity in the world to meet the growing demand. So the unspoken strategy is that Germany will continue to pay crazy prices and other, less rich countries go empty-handed,” Christian Leye, a Bundestag Left Party representative told Bloomberg.

Germany did manage to reduce its dependence on Russian energy last year by importing LNG through European neighbors and boosting pipeline gas flows from Norway and the Netherlands. However, its gas storages were filled over the summer, when Russian gas still flowed directly to the country. Another problem is the cost of LNG imports, which is estimated to be four times more expensive than Russian pipeline deliveries. Germany may also face supply constraints if the Netherlands goes through with recently announced plans to shut down the Groningen gas field, the region’s largest gas deposit.

For more stories on economy & finance visit RT’s business section

More articles

Latest article

Putin’s war machine risks running out of fuel, so Russia is banning the export of gasoline and diesel

Now 575 days into his war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin has halted virtually all exports of gasoline and diesel out of the country to...

Coinbase pursued FTX Europe acquisition as it looked to expand its overseas derivatives business

In its pursuit to build out crypto derivatives offerings worldwide, Coinbase explored an acquisition of FTX’s European entity following the exchange’s November bankruptcy, according...

Planet Fitness’s ousted CEO still doesn’t know why he was fired

Up until last week, things seemed to be going pretty well for Chris Rondeau. The CEO of Planet Fitness was overseeing a growing empire:...

Beer could run low as climate crisis decimates Europe’s barley crops, warns the CEO of Japanese brewer Asahi

Beer could be facing an existential crisis as climate change looks set to hammer Europe’s vital barley supplies, a major brewing chief has said....

On The Same Day Biden Offers Nearly 500,000 Venezuelan Illegal Aliens Protection, Video Shows Them March Across The Border By The Thousands

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas announced on Wednesday that nearly a half-million Venezuelan illegal immigrants would be...