Reversal of the gas flows
Reversal of the gas flows
GTS: historically low gas transmission
In 2022, Gasunie Transport Service transmitted 784 TWh (73.5 bcm) of gas, the lowest volume of gas transmitted in the last 30 years and a decrease of approximately 7% compared to the 841 TWh (79.3 bcm) transmitted in 2021. The decrease is largely due to lower domestic consumption and a decrease in G-gas exports abroad.
There were two underlying causes for this decline in market demand, the first of these being the considerably higher average annual temperature in 2022. Particularly striking were the warm periods at the beginning of this year and during the last two weeks of 2022. The second cause was a sharp rise in gas prices as a result of the shortage due to the drastically reduced supply of gas from Russia to Europe. This has led to a reversal of the gas flows, as shown in the chart below.
Gas transport changed considerably in 2022. Where, in the past, high-calorific gas was transported from East to West, with the gas being imported from Germany via the Netherlands and then exported to the UK and Belgium, in 2022 the flow of high-calorific gas changed from West to East, with the Netherlands importing gas from the UK and Belgium and exporting this to Germany. What is striking is the sharp increase in entry via LNG tankers (+116%) and a sharp increase in exit capacity to fill Dutch storage facilities (+56%).
Peak supply
Peak supply is an important public task carried out by GTS for small users in the Netherlands. Peak supply must be distributed if the mean effective 24-hour temperature falls to below -9.0°C. GTS provides all the necessary facilities to ensure peak supply deliveries to licence holders, including gas purchasing, flexibility services and gas transport over the national grid. There were no peak supply deliveries in 2022.
Transport security in the freezing cold
The highest level of gas transport in 2022 occurred on Tuesday 13 December, which saw 311 million cubic metres of gas being transported over the course of one day (mcm/day). Though this volume could be transported without problem, it should be noted that this was considerably lower than the volume reached on the busiest day in 2021: 420 mcm/day. Both figures were far below the record set on 2 January 1997, when we transported 527 mcm of gas in one day.
GUD: key role thanks to reverse in gas flows
In 2022, Gasunie Deutschland transported 324 TWh (33.2 bcm) through its networks, an increase of 21.6% compared to the 267 TWh (27.3 bcm) transported in 2021. Germany has 12 regional gas TSOs. With the decline in gas flows from Russia and given its location in the north-western region of Germany, GUD’s network played a crucial role in the transport of replacement gas flows from Norway and the Netherlands.
