The German government has leased a total of four floating liquefied natural gas terminals (so-called FSRUs), Kallanish learns from the Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection.
Two ships are already available this year and will be deployed in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel at the end of this year. The other two ships will be in Stade and in Lubmin, and will be available from the end of 2023 at the earliest. In addition, a fifth FSRU terminal is being built in Lubmin by the end of 2022 by a private consortium.
“We need to build a new infrastructure within a very short time in order to be able to replace Russian gas as quickly as possible,” economy minister Robert Habeck admonishes. “It is therefore very good news that in addition to the four federal vessels, a fifth private regasification vessel is now being added”
Each of the four LNG ships leased by the German government has a capacity of at least about 5 bcm/year. However, it is important that the necessary pipeline capacities are created.
In Wilhelmshaven, the floating terminal can feed 5 billion m3/year can into the grid. The FSRU in Brunsbüttel is scheduled to be ready to start feeding gas into the grid at the end of the year. After the construction and commissioning of a new, 55-kilometre-long gas pipeline, the capacity can then be increased from the end of 2023, so that the full volume of 5 bcm/y can be achieved.
The exact capacities of the pipelines for Stade and Lubmin are currently being determined together with the local stakeholders.
Christian Koehl Germany
