The Hague (energate) - Under current market conditions, the L/H gas switch cannot be accelerated any further. This is the conclusion of the Winter Report of the L-Gas Conversion Taskforce, published by the Dutch government. All activities are currently focused on the agreed further reduction of L-gas in the coming years. The conversion processes in Belgium, France and Germany are on schedule. In the 2021/22 gas year, L-gas demand will fall by a total of 28.7 TWh as a result of the switch, with demand in Germany alone falling by 21.1 TWh.
As production in Groningen is declining faster than L-gas demand, the production of so-called pseudo-L-gas is crucial for ensuring a sufficient L-gas supply. This involves mixing H-gas with nitrogen. At the Wieringermeer nitrogen plant, production has been increased from 80,000 m3/h to 295,000 m3/h since 2019. This corresponds to an additional L-gas production of up to 97 TWh. The report does not include a new status for the nitrogen production in Zuidbroek, which was already scheduled to come on stream in April 2022. This was initially delayed due to the Corona pandemic, and more recently a dispute between the general contractor and a key construction company caused further delays. The plant is now expected to go into operation in October 2023 (
energate reported). The task force's report also states that the price-driven decline in demand is sufficient to compensate for the lack of pseudo-L gas production from Zuidbroek and that there is no need for additional Groningen gas.
Risk of H-gas becoming scarce
However, the task force still sees a risk of an H-gas shortage. It is conceivable that H-gas production in the Netherlands and imports will not be sufficient to meet the demand for H-gas and at the same time fully utilise the nitrogen plants. In January, the Dutch transmission system operator Gasunie Transport Services (GTS) therefore proposed to continue production in Groningen for the coming gas year. For the current gas year, the cap was therefore to be raised from 28 to 32 TWh in order to ensure that enough wells could be used. The same cap should apply for next year (
energate reported). The Dutch government will decide on how to proceed with Groningen production after the end of winter. So far, it is keeping open the possibility of closing the field altogether in the coming gas year.
The task force brings together representatives of the governments, transmission system operators of the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and France. /hl
