AFP, Berlin :
Germany put on a show of unity with the United States Tuesday in talks on importing natural gas, as Berlin battles accusations an under-construction pipeline deepens European energy dependence on Russia.
Economy Minister Peter Altmaier pointed to increased need for imported energy, as European gas fields run dry and governments plan their exits from nuclear and coal power.
“The US is in a position to satisfy a significant proportion of this need” with liquid natural gas (LNG) shipments, he told reporters at a joint press conference with American deputy energy secretary Dan Brouillette.
Several private consortiums are keen to build terminals on Germany’s northern coast to pump LNG from ships into the gas network, Altmaier said, suggesting construction could begin “on a short medium-term timescale”. However, with private firms in the driving seat of the projects, prices must be “competitive” with existing gas suppliers, he added.
Government subsidies could smooth the way for the new infrastructure, although the minister would not be drawn on how much cash Berlin could inject into the projects.
LNG as a potential alternative to Russian gas became a hot topic as construction on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline got under way last year.
The scheme will double the capacity of an existing link between Russia and Germany, and combined with the planned Turkstream connection could remove the need to pump gas to Europe via Ukraine.
Kiev fears eliminating its role as a transit country will expose it to further aggression from Moscow, after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and backed separatist rebels in Ukraine’s east.
Meanwhile eastern EU member states including Poland and the Baltic nations, backed by the US, have complained the pipeline also undermines their security.
Germany put on a show of unity with the United States Tuesday in talks on importing natural gas, as Berlin battles accusations an under-construction pipeline deepens European energy dependence on Russia.
Economy Minister Peter Altmaier pointed to increased need for imported energy, as European gas fields run dry and governments plan their exits from nuclear and coal power.
“The US is in a position to satisfy a significant proportion of this need” with liquid natural gas (LNG) shipments, he told reporters at a joint press conference with American deputy energy secretary Dan Brouillette.
Several private consortiums are keen to build terminals on Germany’s northern coast to pump LNG from ships into the gas network, Altmaier said, suggesting construction could begin “on a short medium-term timescale”. However, with private firms in the driving seat of the projects, prices must be “competitive” with existing gas suppliers, he added.
Government subsidies could smooth the way for the new infrastructure, although the minister would not be drawn on how much cash Berlin could inject into the projects.
LNG as a potential alternative to Russian gas became a hot topic as construction on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline got under way last year.
The scheme will double the capacity of an existing link between Russia and Germany, and combined with the planned Turkstream connection could remove the need to pump gas to Europe via Ukraine.
Kiev fears eliminating its role as a transit country will expose it to further aggression from Moscow, after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and backed separatist rebels in Ukraine’s east.
Meanwhile eastern EU member states including Poland and the Baltic nations, backed by the US, have complained the pipeline also undermines their security.
