Deutscher Verein des Gas- und Wasserfaches e.V. (DVGW) announced on 7 November 2023 that, according to its own calculations, the supply of natural gas in Germany is secure during the winter months. This is also due to successful crisis management by the gas industry and politicians The security of gas supply is also so important because almost every second home in Germany is heated with natural gas.
"The situation of positive filling levels is also a result of the successful efforts of the gas industry and the German government this year and last year", emphasised DVGW boss Linke. "Together, we have succeeded in creating further opportunities to diversify gas imports following the loss of Russian pipeline gas as a result of the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine by making strategically smart decisions such as the rapid construction of LNG feed-in points, thus giving all players more room for manoeuvre." The inflow of liquefied natural gas (LNG) plays an important role in the security of supply. This is delivered by ship and is currently unloaded at three entry points. Availability is also guaranteed via the European transport network. Germany has imported a total of around 4.56 Mt of LNG in the past 12 months.
"The gas storage facilities are almost completely full at exactly 99.9 %. Even if there should be a few very cold weeks or even months, there is no reason to doubt the security of supply", said Prof. Dr. Gerald Linke, Chairman of the DVGW Executive Board, at the association's specialist conference "Winter provisions 2023/2024" today. The 45 underground gas storage facilities distributed throughout Germany currently have a technically usable maximum working gas volume of 23.3 billion cubic metres of natural gas. These cavern and pore storage facilities located deep below the earth's surface secure the supply of natural gas to private households, trade and industry in addition to permanent imports to Germany, for example from Norway, the Netherlands or Belgium.
Improved DVGW storage range tool enables users to make clear forecasts
At the conference, Prof Linke also explained the latest news on the DVGW's storage range tool, which was introduced last winter and can be accessed via the association's website. The tool shows the current storage levels and injection and withdrawal rates of each individual storage facility and how the range of the entire German system storage facility can be determined. For the complex system of natural gas supply, the tool can make fundamental statements about the security of natural gas supply in Germany. With the forecasting function, it is possible to vary the settings of the parameters "import inflows", "weather conditions" and "changes in consumption". For example, the assumed course of the winter or the amount of savings can be customised. Methodological improvements have now been made in an update, which provide reliable and comprehensible assumptions for the model calculation based on historical data and correlations. Users can calculate variations in temperature, savings behaviour and the import situation using monthly assumptions and gain an impression of the sensitivity of these input variables.
