Page 12 - GLNG Week 20 2022

GLNG EUROPE GLNG

Germany, Qatar at odds

in LNG talks

TRADING GERMANY and Qatar are at odds over contract reselling spare Qatari cargoes elsewhere.
terms over LNG supply, according to Reuters, in LNG import projects have been discussed
particular regarding the latter’s preference for in Germany for many years, but after years of
long-term contracts with destination clauses. languishing, they are now making fast progress
Germany has no regasification capacity and in the wake of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. A
relies on pipeline gas imports, mainly from total of four terminals have been proposed, with
Russia. But since Moscow began its invasion of a combined capacity of more than 22 bcm per
Ukraine, the German government has embraced year.
LNG as the short-term means of phasing out Qatar’s LNG export capacity is currently
Russian gas imports as quickly as 2024. However, 77mn tonnes per year and is fully utilised,
it wants to achieve this without compromising although Doha is working on an expansion that
on its climate goals, which include slashing its would bring this to 110mn tpy by the middle of
carbon emissions by 88% by 2040, and fulfill- the decade. In the meantime, it may be able to
ing practically all of its electricity needs through ramp up supplies to Europe by diverting ship-
renewable power five years before that. ments that might otherwise have gone to Asia.
As such, Germany is reluctant to enter into A second expansion plan is under consideration
contracts of at least 20 years’ duration for LNG that would raise the country’s capacity further to
supply from Qatar, as the kingdom would wish, 127mn tpy by the late 2020s.™
according to Reuters. It is also against agreeing to
destination clauses, which would restrict it from

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