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Germany plans more LNG capacity as Russian gas dwindles

Germany will charter a fifth floating liquefied natural gas terminal as it looks to wean itself off Russian pipeline imports and secure supplies for future winters, the economy ministry said Thursday.

Published: 1 September 2022 16:38 CEST

Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck speaks at a press conference.

Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck speaks at a press conference. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Kay Nietfeld

The terminal for the import of LNG will be installed at the port of Wilhelmshaven on Germany’s northwest coast and is planned to come online at the end of 2023.

Germany has been scrambling to find new sources of gas as deliveries from Russia have dwindled in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine.

The drying up of supplies via pipelines connecting Russia with Germany has sent prices for fuel and electricity soaring.

In response, the German government has fired up mothballed coal power plants, while evaluating a controversial extension to the lifetime of its
nuclear power plants beyond the end of the year.

It has also launched an energy-saving drive ahead of winter.

READ ALSO: What to know about Germany’s energy saving rules

“It is astonishing that we have reduced the dependence on Russian gas so quickly with the development of new infrastructure, compared to the decades it took to become dependent on Russia,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said at a press conference.

For future winters, the newly chartered floating terminal should fill the gap left by Russian gas imports, which covered 55 percent of Germany’s demand before the war.

The new unit, to be operated by a consortium including energy companies EON and Engie, is set to have a capacity of “at least five billion cubic meters per year”, according to the ministry.

The five government-chartered terminals have a total capacity of 25 billion cubic meters per year, with the first set to start pumping gas around the end of this year.

A further private project in Lubmin on Germany’s Baltic coast is set to have a capacity of 4.5 billion cubic meters per year, while another private
terminal in Rostock is also in the works.

Together, the private and public projects will cover “about a third” of Germany’s total gas demand, according to the ministry.

In time, the government plans to convert the fifth terminal location in Wilhelmshaven to the importation of hydrogen — “provisionally from 2025”.

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Germany, Czech Republic accuse Russia of cyberattacks

The accusations come at a time of strained relations between Moscow and the West following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the European Union’s support for Kyiv.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said a newly concluded government investigation found that a cyberattack targeting members of the Social Democratic Party had been carried out by a group known as APT28.

APT28 “is steered by the military intelligence service of Russia”, Baerbock told reporters during a visit to Australia.

“In other words, it was a state-sponsored Russian cyberattack on Germany and this is absolutely intolerable and unacceptable and will have consequences.”

APT28, also known as Fancy Bear, has been accused of dozens of cyberattacks in countries around the world. Russia denies being behind such actions.

The hacking attack on German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s SPD party was made public last year. Hackers exploited a previously unknown vulnerability in Microsoft Outlook to compromise e-mail accounts, according to Berlin.

Berlin on Friday summoned the acting charge d’affaires of the Russian embassy over the incident.

The Russian embassy in Germany said its envoy “categorically rejected the accusations that Russian state structures were involved in the given incident… as unsubstantiated and groundless”.

Arms, aerospace targeted: Berlin

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the cyber campaign was orchestrated by Russia’s military intelligence service GRU and began in 2022. It also targeted German companies in the armaments and aerospace sectors, she said.

Such cyberattacks are “a threat to our democracy, national security and our free societies”, she told a joint news conference in Prague with her Czech counterpart Vit Rakusan.

“We are calling on Russia again to stop these activities,” Faeser added.

Czech government officials said some of its state institutions had also been the target of cyberattacks blamed on APT28, again by exploiting a weakness in Microsoft Outlook in 2023.

Czech Interior Minister Rakusan said his country’s infrastructure had recently experienced “higher dozens” of such attacks.

“The Czech Republic is a target. In the long term, it has been perceived by the Russian Federation as an enemy state,” he told reporters.

EU, NATO condemnation

The German and Czech findings triggered strong condemnation from the European Union.

“The malicious cyber campaign shows Russia’s continuous pattern of irresponsible behaviour in cyberspace, by targeting democratic institutions, government entities and critical infrastructure providers across the European Union and beyond,” EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said.

The EU would “make use of the full spectrum of measures to prevent, deter and respond to Russia’s malicious behaviour in cyberspace”, he added.

State institutions, agencies and entities in other member states including in Poland, Lithuania, Slovakia and Sweden had been targeted by APT28 in the past, the statement added.

The latest accusations come a day after NATO expressed “deep concern” over Russia’s “hybrid actions” including disinformation, sabotage and cyber interference.

The row also comes as millions of Europeans prepare to go to the polls for the European Parliament elections in June, and concerns about foreign meddling are running high.

Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky told AFP that “pointing a finger publicly at a specific attacker is an important tool to protect national interests”.

One of the most high-profile incidents so far blamed on Fancy Bear was a cyberattack in 2015 that paralysed the computer network of the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag. It forced the entire institution offline for days while it was fixed.

In 2020, the EU imposed sanctions on individuals and entities linked to the APT28 group over the incident.

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