Promised since 2018, the closure of the Groningen natural gas field, the largest in Europe, has been recorded in the Netherlands. However, the authorities are keeping the last eleven extraction units operational for an additional year before definitively closing the valves in the event of a “very harsh” winter, against a backdrop of persistent geopolitical tensions.
The deposit had been exploited since 1963 but for more than twenty years, the population has suffered earthquakes of low magnitude but close to the surface, due to vacuum pockets formed during gas extraction, which caused numerous damages. After rejoicing at the announced closure of the deposit, local residents became disillusioned with warnings from experts that earthquakes could continue for years.
Homes destroyed and “tens of thousands of children in a shit situation”
“A lot of people in the province suffer from psychological problems because of gas extraction,” says Jan Wigboldus, president of the Groningen Gas Council, a local association that campaigns for earthquake victims. Many of them also found themselves facing a legal and technical quagmire relating to compensation. Many houses in the Groningen region have been restored or rebuilt, incorporating earthquake-resistant structures. In the region, there are “tens of thousands of children in a shit situation”, it is “terrible”, resigning Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Friday during a visit, the Dutch agency reported ANP.
And if gas extraction has gradually been reduced almost to nothing, The Hague decided in 2022 to postpone the closing of the valves due to global energy uncertainties largely caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine . In February, a parliamentary committee report accused Dutch authorities of having “paid little attention to long-term risks” despite the extraction proving successful, asserting that the government had a moral obligation to remedy the situation. For several months, mountains of pipeline debris have been visible on the grounds of old extraction stations, already dismantled or in the process of being dismantled.
According to Shell, around 2.3 trillion cubic meters have been extracted from the deposit. Between 1963 and 2020, around 429 billion euros (figure corrected for inflation) were generated by Groningen gas, and 85% of these profits went into state coffers.