The first Lubminer LNG terminal is scheduled to go into regular operation shortly. A pipeline is to be laid for a second one - through the most important spawning area for herring.
Lubmin (dpa/mv) - The fishing expert Christopher Zimmermann sees risks for the herring stock in the construction of the second liquefied natural gas terminal planned for Western Pomerania. The head of the Thünen Institute for Baltic Sea Fisheries in Rostock told the German Press Agency that the biggest problems were to be expected when building the pipeline through the Greifswalder Bodden. The construction work would therefore be problematic in the spring. "However, this time is the most sensitive for the offspring production of the stock, and the Greifswalder Bodden is the most important spawning area."
A floating terminal chartered by the federal government is to be stationed around 30 to 40 kilometers off Lubmin in the Baltic Sea and connected to gas pipelines in Lubmin by a pipeline. The energy group RWE and the Norwegian company Stena-Power are to realize the project. RWE announced that construction work had already begun on land. "The goal of everyone involved is to complete the terminal for the coming winter."
The start of construction at sea will be determined as part of the approval process. The aim of everyone involved is to reconcile the tight schedule and the strict environmental regulations. According to Zimmermann, the cloudiness caused by the construction work is the most important factor. "Once the tube is in place, we don't expect any effects on spawning in the Greifswalder Bodden." There are a number of ways to mitigate the negative effects. The parties involved held talks on this.
For a first terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Lubmin, the state government announced on Thursday that it would issue the last remaining operating license. This is to be handed over next weekend in the presence of Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), among others. Unlike the federal terminal, it does not require offshore pipelines. Smaller tankers transport the LNG through the shallow Bay of Greifswald to Lubmin. The operator, the company Deutsche Regas, speaks of a "virtual pipeline".
However, according to its own statements, Deutsche Regas has applied to be able to use the pipeline that is still to be built. This is intended to increase capacity in a further expansion phase of the current terminal. The company had also signaled that it would also be able to use the existing Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline for this purpose. Like the sister pipeline Nord Stream 1, it also runs from Russia through the Greifswalder Bodden to Lubmin and was never put into operation after the federal government had put the certification process on hold.
She had previously rejected a change of use. Probably also because then an expropriation of Nord Stream 2 would be in the room. Nord Stream 1 and 2 were severely damaged at the end of September. There is evidence of sabotage.
In order to compensate for the lack of gas deliveries from Russia, Germany relies, among other things, on LNG delivered by ship. In addition, the construction of our own terminals was pushed ahead at breakneck speed. In addition to Lubmin, Wilhelmshaven in Lower Saxony also has a ready-made terminal. A terminal is also to be opened in Brunsbüttel in Schleswig-Holstein in the near future. More are planned.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, administrative assistance from Bavaria is also used to speed up the approval process. Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig (SPD) and her Bavarian counterpart Markus Söder (CSU) announced to the media in Lubmin at the end of August that experts from Bavaria should help out in the north-east. From Monday, a woman in the Schwerin Ministry of the Environment and two men from Bavaria in the responsible state office in Stralsund should start. "As far as we know, it is the first such administrative assistance in MV," said a spokesman for the Schwerin Ministry of the Environment.
