Denmark Faces Challenges from 2019: Energinet
Danish gas security of supply is high, the country’s gas and power grids operator Energinet said in a report mid December. But it will be severely challenged when the main offshore platform Tyra is rebuilt.
Energinet says its new Security of Gas Supply 2017 report, published December 14, sets out the challenges ahead.
Denmark is still a net exporter of gas, but has access to gas storage – although Danish storage capacity was reduced by 0.12bn m3 this year -- plus imports from Germany.
However gas from the Tyra gas field in the Danish North Sea will cease from November 2019 until July 2022 as its platform is rebuilt and, during that period, securing the country’s gas supply will be a challenge, because 90% of Danish gas production is processed on Tyra – and imports from Germany will need to be stepped up to satisfy not just the Danish but the smaller inter-linked Swedish market.
“Energinet is working together with the players in the gas sector to ensure a continued robust security of supply during the period, where the Tyra platform is out of operation due to reconstruction”, said Energinet gas grid director Torben Brabo. Once complete, Danish gas production should increase. France's Total, expected to buy the field's operator Maersk Oil in 2018, will lead on Tyra's redevelopment.
The grids operator also said that “important steps” had been taken in 2017 towards developing a joint balancing zone for Denmark and Sweden, and in the 10bn m3/yr Baltic Pipe project to flow Norwegian gas to Denmark and Poland starting October 2022.
Danish 2017 gas consumption is expected to remain about 2.6bn m3, said Energinet. It expects Danish gas production reaching its shores to be about 3.4bn m3 in 2017, so slightly more than combined Danish/Swedish gas use, meaning a small net export to Germany. “In gas year 2016-2017, we haven’t experienced one single security of supply incident," said Brabo.
Biogas, at 5% of the Danish gas system at end-2017, is expected to reach at least 10% in 2020, much of it already coming from pig farms; 10-15 more biogas units are expected to be grid-connected in 2017-18.