Denmark’s largest natural gas field, the Tyra field, will not be able to produce gas again until the end of next year. TotalEnergies SE, the largest shareholder of the consortium that owns the reservoirs, reports this.
The main reasons given for the delay are supply chain issues arising from the COVID pandemic. Normally the Tyraveld would start up again in July this year, but that was already postponed to June next year. It now appears that that target date will not be met either.
The field was shut down for work in September 2019 after the seabed subsided. The country was itself a net exporter of natural gas until that year, but has since become dependent on gas imports to meet its energy needs.
One of the countries it turned to to do that was Russia. However, that turned off the gas tap in June, after Denmark refused to pay in rubles for the coveted raw material.
German gas (or is it Russian?)
Denmark, however, imported the lion’s share of its stock, about 75 percent, from Germany. However, the country’s southern neighbor is itself heavily dependent on natural gas from Russia, where it bought more than half of its supply before the invasion of Ukraine.
Now that Putin also threatens to turn off the gas tap to Germany, it seems at first sight that Denmark could get into trouble. After all, the Russian dictator severely limited how much gas could flow through the important Nord Stream pipeline in July flows to Germany.
Russia claims pipeline maintenance is the culprit, but European politicians say Putin is using the gas as leverage to retaliate for sanctions imposed on his country after he invaded Ukraine. In any case, there is a danger of an energy crisis in Europe due to the imminent shortage of gas.
Other places
Despite all these things, the situation for Denmark is not as urgent as it is for other countries. After all, the country’s gas reserves are about 85 percent full, according to the Danish energy agency.
Soon it will also be able to import from Norway, via the Baltic Pipeline. It is currently under construction and will transport gas from Norway to Poland from October via Denmark.
Other European countries are now also looking for alternative options to avoid a winter crisis. Italy imports more gas from Algeriabut Europe also beckons other African countries. The United States has also significantly increased its exports to Europe.
(fjc)
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