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Natural gas storage facility near Halle: How long will the supply last?
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Stringer/Getty Images
For months, the filling levels in German natural gas storage facilities only knew one direction: upwards.
But now Germany consumes on average more gas from the storage facilities than is refilled there: “For the first time we are seeing a slight withdrawal” from the German gas storage facilities, wrote the President of the Federal Network Agency, Klaus Müller, on Twitter on Saturday.
The filling level of all German gas storage facilities together fell by 0.03 percent to 99.26 on Thursday.
The filling levels are always communicated with a delay.
"We have stored a lot of gas, but the winter can last a long time," wrote Müller.
In order to avoid a gas shortage, Germany must save gas, build liquid gas terminals and secure the infrastructure.
The head of the Federal Network Agency had previously warned against false security in view of the high storage levels: "A few freezing cold days are enough for a dramatic increase in gas consumption," said Müller in the SPIEGEL interview.
"We know from historical data that when it gets really frosty, the storage tanks are quickly drained."
In another tweet, Müller noted that the minus 0.03 percent was a net value.
Individual gas storage tanks continued to store gas, while others released gas, he explained.
mic/dpa