Germany’s gas storage facility down

The Rehden gas storage facility in Germany, operated by Astora, a subsidiary of Sefe Group, has been temporarily shut down for safety reasons following a high-pressure flaring incident that occurred on Tuesday. The LBEG mining authority, which supervises the facility, has stated that there is no indication of sabotage and that a restart is expected by 1700 GMT on Friday. The facility has a capacity of 4 billion cubic meters, which represents a small fraction of the annual gas usage of Germany.

A spokesperson for LBEG confirmed that there has been no impact on the security of supply, as withdrawals were not planned or underway during the incident. The gas markets are sensitive to any news of disruptions to already tight supplies, however, the industry group Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) website showed that the Rehden facility was 90.3% full before the incident.

Astora has assured that they are working with the authorities to determine the cause of the high-pressure flaring, and a team of experts, including LBEG, has been assembled to investigate the matter. The spokesperson for Astora also stated that the market would be informed as soon as further details become available, though there is no fixed timing for further notifications.

In conclusion, although events like high-pressure flaring are unusual, they are not entirely uncommon, and the Rehden gas storage facility is expected to resume operation soon. The incident has had no significant impact on the security of supply, and the authorities are investigating the matter to prevent similar incidents in the future.