Germany on Nov. 15 completed construction of its first floating terminal for LNG at the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven as it scrambles to secure more LNG and move away from Russian pipeline gas.
“The new LNG landing place is a big step towards a secure energy supply,” said Lower Saxony state economy minister Olaf Lies in a statement.
Federal economy minister Robert Habeck said that Wilhelmshaven would become functional around the turn of the year, as would a second floating terminal at the Brunsbuettel North Sea port.
The Wilhelmshaven floating storage and regasification (FSRU) unit, for utility Uniper, will be moored at a now expanded pier and enabled to regasify LNG arriving on special tankers.
The new port infrastructure there will be equipped to switch to imports of low-carbon energy sources such as hydrogen in the future, said Lower Saxony environment minister Christian Meyer.
Germany relied on Russia for nearly a third of its gas last year but Berlin, which aims to halt any remaining Russian flows by the summer of 2024, in May started fast-tracking FSRU applications and related ones for more permanent, onshore LNG reception terminals at some sites.
The designated Wilhelmshaven FSRU, the vessel Hoegh Esperanza, is still located at a shipyard in Brest, France, Eikon Refinitiv ship tracking data showed. A spokesperson for the ministry led by Lies said the Esperanza was expected to arrive fully laden in mid-December and would be able to process incoming LNG tankers from January.
Habeck, listing the next steps in Germany’s LNG strategy, said the FSRU for RWE in Brunsbuettel should also arrive around the turn of the year, and projects at Stade and Lubmin would become operational at the end of 2023.
Wilhelmshaven will have another FSRU start-up in the fourth quarter of next year, operated by owner Excelerate Energy on behalf of a consortium of Tree Energy Solutions, E.ON and Engie.
A privately chartered and operated FSRU was also expected at Lubmin at the end of this year.
Taken together, the six FSRUs could theoretically cover a third of Germany’s annual gas needs, based on the 90.5 Bcm consumed in 2021.
Recommended Reading
Trump Taps Ex-Congressman Zeldin to Run Environmental Protection Agency
2024-11-11 - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Nov. 11 he will appoint Republican former Congressman Lee Zeldin, who frequently voted against legislation on green issues, to run the Environmental Protection Agency.
US Grid Operator Faces New Complaint Over Power Supply Auction
2024-11-19 - PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. grid operator, is being accused of unfairly awarding high payments to power plants and pushing up electricity costs for homes and businesses.
What's Affecting Oil Prices This Week? (Sept. 9, 2024)
2024-09-09 - Within the context of lower oil prices and disappointing economic data, members of OPEC+ have decided to delay the unwinding of voluntary cuts, which were expected at the end of September.
RBAC: Environmental Pressures Undercutting the Global Gas Network
2024-10-10 - RBAC founder and energy economist Robert Brooks worries that environmental goals and pressures have taken a front seat at the expense of affordable energy access to countries such as Africa.
New FERC Commissioner Calls Slow Permitting Process ‘Huge Problem’
2024-09-17 - FERC Commissioner David Rosner said the commission is aware that the permitting process is too slow overall at Gastech Houston 2024.
Comments
Add new comment
This conversation is moderated according to Hart Energy community rules. Please read the rules before joining the discussion. If you’re experiencing any technical problems, please contact our customer care team.