Index – Abroad – German gas reservoirs are overflowing

According to the European Union, the use of natural gas reservoirs in Germany reached 100 percent in the first half of the week. GIE According to your data. Europe’s largest economy increased its reserves even as Russia halted exports to the country following its invasion of Ukraine.

Full reservoirs guarantee a level of reassurance for people and industry during the winter months.

At the same time, Germany reached storage targets earlier than planned, as capacity had already reached 95 percent of the November target in mid-October.

They reached full capacity on the same day that the first LNG terminal, built to transport liquefied natural gas designed to replace Russian gas, opened. The ship at Wilhelmshaven was rebuilt in 194 days. A total of five terminals are planned to open, which will be able to transfer an amount corresponding to three years of Hungary’s gas consumption to the German gas network.

Klaus Müller, head of the Federal Network Agency, described the two parallel events as a “double win” and said Germany now needs to speed up.

More gas savings than expected

The success of gas management is partly due to alternative sources. Russian gas is largely replaced by imports of liquefied natural gas from Norway and the US – He noted Deutsche Welle.

After the cessation of Russian imports, both the population and the industry heeded calls for savings, especially since the mild autumn also favored a reduction in gas consumption. The start of the heating season exceeded all expectations, with much less gas being burned than in previous years.

To avoid an energy crisis, outdated oil and coal-fired power plants were temporarily restarted in Germany, and the life of the last three nuclear power plants in operation was extended.

Germany and Poland nationalize Gazprom’s subsidiaries

In Germany, meanwhile, it was announced that a subsidiary of Russian energy giant Gazprom would be nationalized. Behind this decision is the ultimate elimination of Russia’s energy dependence.

New name for former Gazprom Germany Securing Energy for Europe, abbreviated as SEFE, guarantees European energy security. The company also indirectly controls Germany’s largest gas reservoir at Rehden in northwest – Written by Also Deutsche Welle.

A similar move was announced in Poland, where the Minister of Development announced: Warsaw will take over the management of Gazprom’s company there and acquire its assets.

The German government argued the move was necessary to protect energy security amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Berlin brought the company under its effective control in April, but ownership remains unclear. Because of this, business partners and banks were reluctant to pursue business relationships.

“The situation threatened the continuity of SEFE’s business activities and thus the supply of gas,” explained the German Ministry of Economy for the nationalization decision.

Russian Gazprom, now owned by the German state, effectively lost its stake in the company.

The more than four thousand kilometer long pipeline connects the natural gas fields of Russia’s Yamal Peninsula and Western Siberia with Poland and Germany. “This is how we ensure the safety of Poland’s critical infrastructure” – He said Polish Development Minister Waldemar Buda.

In April, Warsaw imposed sanctions on fifty Russian oligarchs and companies, including Gazprom, in response to Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Moscow cut off gas supplies to Poland after Warsaw refused to pay in rubles.

“According to the Polish constitution, expropriation of land is not possible, that’s why we decided to order forced agriculture” – Quoted Buda is Reuters.

(Cover Image: Wilhelmshafen LNG terminal. Photo: (Adam Perry/Getty Images)