German imports of Russian gas drop significantly – Bloomberg
Germany has cut its reliance on Russian gas by nearly two-thirds compared to last year, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing the country’s Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW).
According to the report, the share of Russian gas consumed in Germany has fallen to around 20% this year from 55% in 2021.
This happened amid a significant drop in imports of the Russian fuel to the EU due to sanctions, explosions in September on Russia’s Nord Stream gas pipelines which left them inoperable, and Berlin’s moves to diversify supplies.
Germany is reportedly short by around 50 billion cubic meters of gas in yearly deliveries as a result of the reduction in Russian supplies. According to BDEW, however, the country has managed to reduce its overall demand by around 15% this year due to mild weather and a campaign to reduce consumption.
Germany has compensated for the reduction in Russian supplies by increasing imports from the Netherlands, Belgium, and France, according to BDEW.
The country also plans to step up its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports. Last week Germany launched its first floating LNG terminal at the North Sea port of Wilhelmshaven, with another four set to be deployed in the coming months.
The planned terminals are expected to give the country an annual LNG import capacity of at least 29.5 bcm, roughly a third of its yearly gas demand of 90.5 bcm.
According to Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the terminals will help ensure that Germany’s energy supplies do not “depend on pipelines from Russia.” LNG deliveries, however, are expected to cost much more than Russian pipeline gas.
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