Germany receives liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United Arab Emirates as a substitute for the lack of energy supplies from Russia. During the visit of Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz to the Gulf state, the Essen-based energy company RWE signed a contract for the first delivery of 137,000 cubic meters of LNG on Sunday. It is said to be the first delivery to arrive at the new LNG terminal in Brunsbüttel near Hamburg in December 2022. According to RWE, a memorandum on multi-year deliveries from 2023 has been signed.
For comparison: Before the war of aggression against Ukraine, gas with an energy volume of around 1.76 billion kilowatt hours flowed through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline on February 1 alone, according to the operator. The now agreed first delivery of 137,000 cubic meters of liquid gas for RWE by ship from the United Arab Emirates corresponds to about 0.95 billion kilowatt hours.
During the visit, Scholz announced that he intends to further promote cooperation with the Emirates in the energy sector. “A whole series” of diesel and liquid gas projects have already been advanced with the Gulf state, said the SPD politician in Abu Dhabi. When it comes to energy supply, you have to rely on as many suppliers as possible. Dependence on one supplier “will certainly not happen to us again,” emphasized Scholz.
Up to 250,000 tons of diesel fuel per month
According to the agreement on Sunday, the Emirati state-owned company ADNOC is also to deliver up to 250,000 tons of diesel fuel to Germany every month from 2023. The agreement on this was concluded with the Lower Saxony energy company Hoyer.
The Emirati state agency WAM said that Emirati President Mohammed bin Sajid and Scholz had described “cooperation, dialogue and priority for diplomatic solutions” as key in dealing with “various problems and crises”.
Until the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Germany still obtained 55 percent of its natural gas from Russia. Deliveries from there have now largely ceased and the German gas suppliers are looking for new sources of supply. The United Arab Emirates have the seventh largest natural gas reserves in the world. It was expected that a contract for the supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Germany would be signed during the Chancellor’s visit.
The Emirati state-owned company ADNOC, based in the capital Abu Dhabi, became a pioneer in LNG production in the Persian Gulf after it was founded in 1971 with a subsidiary. In February, ADNOC announced the discovery of significant amounts of natural gas in offshore fields off the coast of Abu Dhabi for the first time.
Profits from oil and gas exports continue to account for the majority of the state budget for the Emirates. According to the US Energy Agency EIA, the country holds the seventh largest proven natural gas deposits in the world with around six trillion cubic meters. In 2008, the country became a net gas importer due to rising demand at home. So far, liquid gas exports have mainly gone to Asia.
Scholz should travel further to Qatar on Sunday. The rich emirate has the third largest gas reserves in the world after Russia and Iran and is the leading exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG). However, no contracts were expected to be signed in Qatar.
