Construction starts on Germany’s first land-based LNG terminal

Stefan Weil, the Minister President of Lower Saxony, said: “Following the first floating LNG terminal, Germany’s first land-based LNG terminal is now also being built in Lower Saxony. My sincere thanks go out to all involved. Our federal state is playing a key role in the expansion of infrastructure to import energy. It is also at the centre of the planned Germany-wide hydrogen core network, which will link all the main production sites, storage locations and industrial consumers. In conjunction with the further expansion of wind energy, we are strongly pursuing the goal of a green hydrogen economy and strengthening Lower Saxony’s position as Germany’s energy hub.”

Besides the two German energy suppliers EnBW and SEFE, which have respectively booked annual capacities of 6 billion m³ and 4 billion m³ at the terminal, also the Czech energy company CEZ has secured long-term import rights for 2 billion m³/y. All customers have the option to switch their contracts to hydrogen-based energy sources, such as ammonia, as part of the energy transition in their home countries.

Jozef Síkela, the Czech Minister of Industry and Trade, added: “We are constantly working to ensure the best possible future for our energy industry in the Czech Republic. Capacities for importing LNG from overseas are also an essential part of all this. After securing capacity in the floating LNG terminal in the Netherlands, we also managed last autumn in cooperation with CEZ to secure capacity in the first German land-based terminal, Stade. In three years, it will contribute to covering up to a third of today's Czech consumption. Thanks to the convenient location, the terminal can also contribute to the reduction of fees for transporting gas to the Czech Republic.”

Jan Themlitz, CEO of the Hanseatic Energy Hub, emphasised: “After six years of planning and permitting, the construction phase now begins. We are proud that Germany’s first land-based terminal is taking shape in Stade – this being not only a major German but also a major European project. Privately initiated and funded we are benefiting from the vast experience of our shareholders. Partners Group is one of the largest private investors in the infrastructure sector. And Enagás, Europe’s leading LNG-terminal operator, will be assuming operational responsibility and is teaming up with Dow, the ideal industrial partner on the site in Stade. As an initiator, the Buss Group has played a key role in driving the project forward and bringing the shareholder-team together.”

Técnicas Reunidas – the global specialist for planning, procurement and construction – and its partners FCC and Enka will be responsible for the construction. To make the central Hanseatic Energy Hub a reality by 2027:

• Workers will have to drive around 4600 piles into the ground. The foundation is already statically designed to allow a subsequent conversion to ammonia.
• In addition, for the terminal, more than 60 000 m3 of concrete will be poured, the equivalent of around 20 Olympic swimming pools.
• Almost 11 000 t of structural steelwork will be erected, weighing 1.5 times as much as the Eiffel Tower.

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/liquid-natural-gas/01072024/construction-starts-on-germanys-first-land-based-lng-terminal/