Dutch Gas Imports Exceed Output

Last year the Netherlands imported more gas than it produced for the first time, according to its statistical bureau CBS. Output fell 13% compared with  2016, to 43.9bn m³. At the same time, gas imports in 2017 rose 18% to 49.4bn m³.

The ratio will become more obvious in the future as Groningen output is wound down: the field, which would normally have continued production for decades, is expected to produce its last cubic metre no later than 2030 following a government decision.

Norway accounted for 46% of the total, while the UK exported 42% more to the Netherlands year on year, to account for 16% of the total. Imports through Germany, which would be mostly Russian gas, fell 26% and amounted to 21% of the total volume of imported gas. Dutch exports fell last year by 6.2% compared with 2016, at 52bn m³.