In order to make Germany less dependent on Russian pipeline gas in the future, four liquid gas terminals are being built in a hurry. Two of them should be ready for use in winter. Economics Minister Habeck and the companies involved are now sending a "signal of trust".
Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck is pushing ahead with the planning for the first liquefied natural gas terminals in Germany. Floating LNG terminals are to go into operation in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel at the turn of the year, with a line connection to bring the capacities into the network, as Habeck said in Berlin. He signed a memorandum of understanding with energy companies that the LNG ships will be provided with gas "at full capacity" by March 2024. These are Uniper, RWE, EnBW and the EnBW subsidiary VNG.
Habeck said it was about being less susceptible to blackmail. Russia has severely curtailed supplies via the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline. So far, Germany has not had its own terminals for landing liquefied natural gas (LNG). Habeck described the declaration of intent as a "signal of confidence" in the success of the development of an LNG infrastructure, which is to be developed under high pressure. At the same time, it is a signal that Germany will get gas over the winter via the ships in Brunsbüttel and Wilhelmshaven.
The two so-called floating terminals are essentially liquefied gas tankers, but they can convert the fuel back into the gas state themselves. This means that a complete port is not required, but primarily only a connection from the ship to the pipeline on land. The government has rented a total of four of the special ships. Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel are scheduled to go into operation as early as winter - benefiting from an accelerated planning and approval process.
According to the government, the terminals in Stade in Lower Saxony and Lubmin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania will probably not be operational until the end of 2023. A private consortium will also build a fifth terminal in Lubmin on the Baltic Sea by the end of the year. The terminals, together with gas savings of around 20 percent and full storage facilities, are key factors in ensuring that Germany gets through the winter without a gas shortage.
