“Analyses show that this year the French network has the capacity to ensure the necessary supplies to fuel consumption and exports, including in the event of a cold winter”… GRTgaz And Teregathe two managers of the gas transport network in France, say they are confident, for the coming winter, in the French capacities to cope with our consumption in gas for winter.
France is better equipped this winter to supply itself with gas and export to European neighbors, even if tensions remain possible at the end of winter in the event of a late cold snap, they indicated in a joint press conference, this Monday.
Caution remains in order
Caution therefore remains in order as France prepares for a second winter without being able to count on Russian gas pipelines: “the safety margin remains low in the event of a cold peak in the second part of winter”, warns Thierry Troublé, director general of GRTgaz. “Its one-off deficit situations could appear if storage was overused at the start of winter in particular.”
The stocks contain the equivalent of approximately a third of the annual gas consumption in France. “They are now 95% full,” says Thierry Troublé, who makes “prudent management” of this stock one of the conditions for ensuring the French gas system this winter. It will also be necessary to count on “sustained imports of LNG (liquefied gas) delivered by boats”. Before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, France already had four LNG terminals. Two in Fos-sur-Mer, near Marseille, one in Dunkirk, and a final one in Montoir-de-Bretagne (near Saint-Nazaire). She has just added a fifth, with THE Cape Ann, floating LNG terminal owned by Total Energies, arrived at the port of Le Havre on September 18. “Its commissioning is in progress”, clarified this Monday morning GRTgaz and Téréga. In addition, gas entry capacities via Spain have been increased, making it possible to inject an additional volume of up to 6 TWh over the winter, according to managers.
Maintaining Sobriety
Finally, Thierry Troublé adds a third condition into the equation for a peaceful winter on the gas system: “maintaining sobriety at levels similar to those observed last winter”. France reduced its gas consumption by 14.3% (climate-adjusted data) between August 1, 2022 and July 31, 2023 compared to the same period of 2018-2019.