LIQUIFIED NATURAL GAS

• In Germany, the estimated cost of building floating LNG terminals for imports to substitute Russian gas has doubled, due in part to higher operating and infrastructure costs
• The cooling, liquefying and transport processes, as well as the post-transport regasification procedures, also require a lot of energy
• Between 10-25% of the energy of the gas is being lost during the liquefaction process
• LNG is to compensate for lost Russian gas supplies, with four new terminals set to come online in Germany alone
• But though touted as a short-term fix, many fear the gas is here for the long haul as the EU becomes the biggest LNG importer in the world.
• With LNG creating almost 10 times more emissions than piped gas by one estimate, its rapid expansion will likely compromise climate targets, say climate researchers, who also reject claims that most LNG infrastructure is suitable for green hydrogen in the future

• A lot of energy is required to extract natural gas from a reservoir, to transport from the gas field to the LNG facility for processing, to chill gas to such low temperatures, and to hold it at that temperature before it is warmed and regasified following a long sea or train journey
• Methane loss across the supply chain risks also contributes to LNG’s high emissions
• Processing LNG is so energy- and carbon-intensive that it can create almost 10 times more carbon emissions than piped gas
• The numerous stages required to take LNG from the wellhead to the market lead to a “very high imported emissions intensity” in comparison to piped gas, whose emissions are limited to upstream and transport and processing
• The emissions intensity of piped gas from Norway in particular is almost 10 times less than average LNG emissions
• LNG emits 14 times as much carbon as solar power when producing the equivalent amount of energy, and 50 times as much carbon as wind power

• The floating LNG terminals now going online in Germany and already established in the Netherlands, France and Belgium are not able to be adapted into infrastructure for green hydrogen
• Any LNG terminals that are built need to be easily retrofitted for green hydrogen to fast-track the clean energy transition
• By the end of the decade, additional costs for Germany’s gas imports could reach up to €200bn ($212bn), doubling gas bills for consumers
• Cheaper sustainable energy sources could instead make up the current gas deficit. Comprehensive energy efficiency upgrades in buildings and electric heat pump instalments will also “turbocharge” the energy transition, said Maria Pastukhova, senior policy adviser at E3G
• There is a corresponding fear that LNG infrastructure overcapacity and long-term regasification contracts at German LNG ports will lead to stranded assets  while simultaneously delaying the phase-out of fossil fuels
• A report by the German think tank New Climate Institute says the new planned terminals could expand capacity by two-thirds above what the nation consumes