German LNG Terminal’s Developers Seek Fast Track to Cut Russian Gas Reliance

(Bloomberg) -- The developers of a planned German liquefied natural gas terminal are pushing to fast-track the project as part of efforts to cut dependence on Russian supplies.

The facility in Brunsbuettel near Hamburg has been planned for several years, though recently faced setbacks and permitting delays. But following the invasion of Ukraine, the German government this month stepped in as a partner for the terminal as Europe looks to wean itself off Russian energy, such as importing LNG from countries like the U.S. and Qatar.

For the Brunsbuettel site, that could mean speeding up the permitting process so construction can start next year, and raising the terminal regasification capacity, according to German LNG Terminal GmbH, the company developing the project.

“They are in a hurry, they are pushing, they want the terminal to be built as soon as possible,” Marcel Tijhuis, senior business developer at German LNG Terminal, said at a conference in Vienna. “With the entry of the German government, we hope the permitting process will get a really big push.”

German state-owned lender KfW will own half of the project, with Nederlandse Gasunie NV owning 40% and acting as an operator, and utility RWE AG holding a 10% stake, Tijhuis said.

While permits could take a year without the recent shareholder changes, construction could begin in 2023 and operations in 2025 if they’re secured this year, he said in an interview on the sidelines of the event.

The project could also start before it’s fully completed. Once a regasification plant is built onshore, arriving vessels can feed LNG there, and then onwards in gaseous form to grids, without the need to wait for tanks to be built, he said.

Depending on approval from the regulator, the terminal regasification capacity can be increased to 10 billion cubic meters a year from 8 billion cubic meters, Tijhuis said. Supply is expected to come from RWE and Axpo Holding AG, but German LNG Terminal has also seen a surge in interest from other companies.

Gasunie is also involved in a floating LNG terminal at Eemshaven in the Netherlands, which could start by October and supply 5 billion to 8 billion cubic meters a year. 

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The Gate LNG terminal in Rotterdam is also set for expansion, potentially to as much as 20 billion cubic meters, from 12 billion cubic meters now, Tijhuis said. The facilities will help meet demand in the Netherlands, Germany and northwest Europe as a whole, he said. 

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With assistance from Bloomberg