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In an address to the German parliament, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the country is looking to expedite the construction of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals as it wants to cut ties with Russian gas, following the latter’s attack on Ukraine.
Germany is one of the major importers of Russian natural gas, with deliveries totaling around 50.6 billion cubic meters (1.7 Tcf) during 2021. Imports from Russia stood at around 60 percent of Germany’s total imports during the past year.
The country also has plenty of potential pipeline supplies from Russia. Certification of one of them, the completed Nord Stream 2 project, has been halted as a response to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Instead, the country is looking to put a shelved project back on track, Uniper’s floating LNG facility at Wilhelmshaven as well as the German LNG Terminal-led project in Brunsbuettel.
After shelving its plans for the development of the 10 Bcm/year floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) based import terminal at Wilhelmshaven, Uniper turned its attention last year to establishing a German national hub for hydrogen at the site.
However, the current ongoing crisis in Ukraine due to Russia’s attack has pushed Germany into seeking other solutions for its energy security. “The events of the last few days and weeks have shown us that a responsible, forward-looking energy policy is not only crucial for our economy and our climate. But also crucial for our security,” Scholz said, adding that Germany is looking to cut its dependency on single energy suppliers.
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The LNG import facility at Bruensbuettel also hit an obstacle last year after the Dutch company Vopak decided to walk away from the project leaving it in the hands of its compatriot gas grid operator Gasunie and Germany’s Oiltanking.
There is also a third project in the planning stage, namely the Hanseatic Energy hub, however, its progression heavily depends on the market conditions.
Scholz further added that Germany is planning to bump its coal and gas reserves and is planning on buying additional gas on the world market in coordination with the European Union.
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