Start of Gas Deliveries from France to Germany

France has started to transport gas directly to Germany, a step and a symbol of European energy solidarity.

Share:

France began Thursday for the first time to transport gas directly to Germany, a step and a symbol in the European energy solidarity to overcome this winter the drying up of flows from Russia.

“This is historic, the first time that France will deliver gas directly to Germany. Until now we sent gas to our neighbor via Belgium,” said Thierry Trouvé, CEO of GRTgaz, the French gas transmission system operator.

These first deliveries are the result of a mutual aid agreement formalized on September 5 between the French and German leaders, Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz, to bring European solidarity into play at a time when gas is highly coveted and its price is skyrocketing.

After the invasion of Ukraine, Russia significantly reduced its gas supplies to Europe, on which some countries were highly dependent.

This is the case in Germany, which needs this energy to run its factories, the lifeblood of its economy.

France has more gas than its neighbor because it benefits from massive supplies from Norway and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States, which have enabled it to fill its winter stocks to 100%.

The two leaders therefore agreed that France should deliver more gas to Germany, which could in return supply, if necessary, electricity to its neighbor weakened by a low nuclear production.

In this context of “a sharp reduction in Russian gas deliveries to Europe and as part of European solidarity on energy security, GRTgaz has mobilized to adapt its system and formalize a proposal to market gas transmission capacity from the
France to Germany,” the French transmission system operator GRTgaz announced in a statement on Thursday.

The first sales of odorized gas to Germany started at 06:00 am, up to 31 gigawatt-hours/day, passing through the border towns of Obergailbach (Moselle) on the French side, and Medelsheim in Saarland, at the interconnection point of the gas network.

– Reverse the flows –

The level of this capacity will be “evaluated daily according to the network conditions”, and may reach a maximum of 100 GWh/day.

In order of magnitude, this corresponds to the power of four nuclear units or the equivalent of 10% of what France receives each day in LNG in its four LNG terminals, according to GRTGaz, which estimates that it will be able to serve Germany all winter.

“Our calculations allow us to be optimistic on our capacity to serve the French demand and to support the electric production while contributing to the European solidarity”, specified to the AFP Thierry Trouvé.

However, on condition that France saves its “gas lake” with sobriety measures to avoid shortages in the event of a late cold snap.

On this first day, all of the 31 gigawatt hours/day capacity put up for auction was sold in Germany at a reserve transmission price of 1.53EUR/MWh/day. Any excess revenue generated by these tolls will be returned to the
suppliers, in accordance with regulatory rules, GRTgaz said.

While the single interconnection point at the French-German border was designed to operate in the direction of Germany to France, the direction of traffic had to be reversed.

The gas is to be transported through a pipe that has been used until now in an east-west direction, partly from Russia via the Megal central European gas pipeline, which runs through southern Germany.

GRTgaz, in collaboration with the German transporters (OGE and GRTgaz Deutschland), has therefore “made technical adjustments” to “make the flow from France to Germany effective”, “not extremely important work” in the end, said the system operator owned by shareholders who include the French state in their capital.

The situation was more complex on the German side: the country had to take regulatory measures to accept French gas, which has the particularity of being odorized, with a sulphur content, which is not the usual practice for the German industry.

Côte d'Ivoire and the Italian group Eni assess progress on the Baleine energy project, whose third phase plans a daily production of 150,000 barrels of oil and 200 million cubic feet of gas for the Ivorian domestic market.
The extreme heatwave in China has led to a dramatic rise in electricity consumption, while Asia records a significant drop in liquefied natural gas imports amid a tight global energy context.
E.ON, together with MM Neuss, commissions Europe’s first fully automated cogeneration plant, capable of achieving a 91 % fuel-use rate and cutting CO₂ emissions by 22 000 t a year.
Facing the lowest temperatures recorded in 30 years, the Argentine government announces reductions in natural gas supply to industries to meet the exceptional rise in residential energy demand across the country.
Solar power generation increased sharply in the United States in June, significantly reducing natural gas consumption in the power sector, despite relatively stable overall electricity demand.
Golden Pass LNG, jointly owned by Exxon Mobil and QatarEnergy, has asked US authorities for permission to re-export liquefied natural gas starting October 1, anticipating the imminent launch of its operations in Texas.
Delfin Midstream reserves gas turbine manufacturing capacity with Siemens Energy and initiates an early works programme with Samsung Heavy Industries, ahead of its anticipated final investment decision in the autumn.
Norwegian group DNO ASA signs gas offtake contract with ENGIE and secures USD 500 million financing from a major US bank to guarantee future revenues from its Norwegian gas production.
Golar LNG Limited has completed a private placement of $575mn in convertible bonds due in 2030, using part of the proceeds to repurchase and cancel 2.5 million of its own common shares, thus reducing its share capital.
Shell Canada Energy announces shipment of the first liquefied natural gas cargo from its LNG Canada complex, located in Kitimat, British Columbia, primarily targeting fast-growing Asian economic and energy markets.
The Australian government is considering the establishment of an east coast gas reservation as part of a sweeping review of market rules to ensure supply, with risks of shortages signalled by 2028.
The increase in oil drilling, deepwater exploration, and chemical advances are expected to raise the global drilling fluids market to $10.7bn by 2032, according to Meticulous Research.
Enbridge Gas Ohio is assessing its legal options following the Ohio regulator's decision to cut its revenues, citing potential threats to investment and future customer costs.
The small-scale liquefied natural gas market is forecast to grow at an annual rate of 7.5%, reaching an estimated total value of $31.78bn by 2030, driven particularly by maritime and heavy-duty road transport sectors.
The European Union extends gas storage regulations by two years, requiring member states to maintain a minimum fill rate of 90% to ensure energy security and economic stability amid market uncertainties.
Energy Transfer strengthens its partnership with Chevron by increasing their liquefied natural gas supply agreement by 50% from the upcoming Lake Charles LNG export terminal, strategically aiming for long-term supply security.
Woodside finalises the divestment of a 40% stake in the Louisiana LNG project to Stonepeak, injecting $5.7 billion to accelerate developments and optimise financial returns ahead of first gas delivery scheduled in 2026.
Keranic Industrial Gas seals a sixty-day exclusivity deal to buy Royal Helium’s key assets, raise CAD9.5mn ($7.0mn) and bring Alberta’s Steveville plant back online in under fifteen weeks.
The Irish-Portuguese company Fusion Fuel strengthens its footprint in the United Arab Emirates as subsidiary Al Shola Gas adds AED4.4 mn ($1.2 mn) in new engineering contracts, consolidating an already robust 2025 order book.
Cheniere Energy validates major investment to expand Corpus Christi terminal, adding two liquefaction units to increase its liquefied natural gas export capacity by 2029, responding to recent international agreements.