€ 2.2bn to go into system upgrades by 2023
Up for discussion
market area conversion as production of low cv gas drops
Berlin, March 18, 2014. - By 2023, German gas transmission system operators (TSOs) will invest some €2.2bn into upgrading the country´s gas infrastructure. In the words of Inga Posch, managing director of FNB Gas, the association of German gas TSOs, "this is a major commitment to improving the security of supply on the part of Germany´s operators“. The second national gas network development plan (NDP Gas) published today lists a total of 27 projects confirmed by the Bundesnetzagentur (BNetzA), the national regulatory agency, for the next ten years. This will boost installed nation-wide compressor capacity by a total of 344 megawatts. At the same time, 522 km of new high-pressure pipelines will be laid. The document can be accessed on the FNB Gas website at www.fnb-gas.de/en/network-develpoment/ndp-2013/ndp-2013.html (NDP 2013).
„A particular challenge TSOs have to meet in future is the significant drop we are seeing in the domestic production of low cv gas" Posch adds. To make things worse, much less low cv gas will be available for import from the Netherlands in the next few years. A possible strategy to ensure long-term gas supplies in Germany and Europe discussed in the NDP 2013 for the first time is therefore to convert areas now using low cv gas to high cv gas. "The NDP 2013 thus initiates an intensive public debate with market partners and the regulatory agency on what we need to do“, Posch concludes.
The general planning framework for the NDP 2013 has been closely coordinated with the national regulatory agency BNetzA and market participants such as gas traders, power station and storage operators, with the accent on consistent planning and transmission system upgrades as part of the Energiewende. Of particular importance was the modification request made by the BNetzA on Dec. 18, 2013 which led to additional investments being included in the NDP 2013.
TSOs are now assessing consultations which dealt with the NDP 2014 and ended on March 7, with results to be communicated to the BNetzA on April 1, 2014. At the same time, operators are now beginning to chart scenarios and frameworks for the NDP 2015.