U.K. Gets Vital Gas Storage Facility

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The U.K.'s Treasury Minister, Lord Deighton KBE, has opened the Stublach Gas Storage Facility in Cheshire, which is destined to become the largest onshore underground gas storage facility in the country by the end of the decade.

Stublach, which represents an investment of £500 million ($783 million) by GDF SUEZ subsidiary Storengy, is a badly needed addition to the U.K.'s low gas storage capabilities. Attended by Jean-Claude Depail, GDF's executive vice president in charge of the Infrastructures Business, the first two of around 20 planned salt caverns were commissioned, representing a capacity of 40 million cubic metres for the U.K. gas market. Another three caverns will be available by the end of December 2014, boosting gas storage to 100 million cubic metres. The site will eventually have up to 20 caverns with a total capacity of 400 million cubic metres, Storengy stated.

"Energy security is central to the government's long-term economic plan, and we are focusing on investing in infrastructure to achieve this," said Lord Deighton KBE, treasury minister. "Sites like Storengy at Stublach play a crucial role in our energy security strategy, allowing gas suppliers and others the flexibility to store gas safely in preparation for when demand is high, or when other supplies are restricted."

The U.K. currently has 6% gas storage ratio (storage capacity/gas consumption), well below the European Union (EU) average of 22%. The country is becoming increasingly dependent on gas imports, and as demand becomes more flexible, new storage sites will play an important role in ensuring gas security. The U.K. was a major producer of gas until around 2000, thanks to plentiful supplies from the North Sea, but the country became a net importer of gas in 2004, as supplies started to dwindle. According to the energy regulator, Ofgem, the U.K. has less gas storage relative to its consumption than any other major European economy.

Jean Claude Depail, Executive Vice President of GDF SUEZ in charge of infrastructures, added : "Stublach is the first investment in the U.K. for our gas storage business, following many years of operation in France and Germany. I am delighted that the project has just achieved a major milestone and the first salt caverns are now full of gas and already contributing to the security of supply of natural gas across the U.K.."

Storengy is the largest operator of natural gas storage in Europe, with a total storage capacity of 12.5 billion cubic metres. It currently operates 22 storage facilities across France, Germany and the U.K., and is represented in Canada and China.

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