Germany clears €3bn of funding for LNG terminals
Germany's government plans to invest up to €3bn ($3.2bn) on the development of four floating LNG import terminals over the next decade in order to phase out Russian gas imports, the country's Handelsblatt newspaper reported on April 15.
The government committed the funds without consulting the budget committee of Germany's parliament, Handelsblatt reported. In a letter to the parliament's president, Barbel Bas, the finance ministry said the lack of consultation was necessary for "compelling reasons," the newspaper reported. Charter contracts for the LNG vessels will be signed on April 20, it said.
"Dependence on Russian energy imports must be reduced quickly and permanently," finance minister Christian Lindner said on social media on April 15, sharing a link to the Handelsblatt report. "Floating LNG terminals make an important contribution to this, which is why we should release the funds now."
Germany's government unveiled a strategy in late March to become "largely independent" of Russian gas imports by mid-2024. Russian gas was used to cover 55% of German gas consumption last year, the economy ministry said in a report then, although this has since fallen to 40%. LNG import terminals have been proposed in the ports of Brunsbuettel (8bn m3/year), Wilhelmshaven (9.8bn m3/yr) and Stade (12bn m3/yr).
Germany's embrace of LNG comes after the government put on hold the certification process for the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in late February after Moscow began its incursion into Ukraine.