Marc Deisenhofer from Präg talks about the energy supply in winter and the years to come

Created: 09/01/2022Updated: 09/01/2022 11:52 am

By: Susanne Lüderitz

Marc Deisenhofer.

© Hermann Rupp Kempten

Kempten/district – How is the energy supply in winter?

What is the gas levy all about?

What do you think of liquefied gas LNG?

Interview with Marc Deisenhofer from the energy supplier Präg.

"Do we get energy?", the managing directors of Allgäu GmbH Klaus Fischer and Bernhard Joachim wanted to know at the Allgäu Day at the Allgäu Festival Week.

With a view to winter, your question was directed at Marc Deisenhofer, Managing Director of the energy service provider Präg.

Gas surcharge, liquid gas LNG, international cooperation: The district messenger then asked Deisenhofer further questions.

"I trust that politicians will do everything to maintain the energy and gas supply for LNG imports (liquefied natural gas, editor's note) as a replacement for the missing Russian natural gas, natural gas storage and energy saving," said Deisenhofer at the Allgäu Day .

In terms of energy saving, he believes that more can already happen now.

"In all likelihood, we will not be able to avoid saving natural gas overall, because from today's perspective, LNG alone and the stored natural gas quantities together with the remaining natural gas imports and other measures - e.g. so-called fuel switches, i.e. the replacement of natural gas as an energy source by other energy sources will not be sufficient to cover the 'normal' winter demand for natural gas."

"It's about social and societal peace in our country"

"We have to think positively," says the managing director, "but not every habit can be maintained 1 to 1." And the social balance is an immense task.

Deisenhofer spoke out in favor of not pouring out relief with a watering can, but rather specifically supporting low-income sections of the population and companies that cannot cope with the rising costs.

"Unfortunately, it's probably not just about the winter, but about the next few years."

Interview:

Kreisbote:

Deisenhofer:

“Of course, fossil LNG is not a good solution from a climate protection or environmental protection perspective.

Energy security next winter is simply about contingency measures to maintain energy supplies.

Without LNG imports, the already tense situation would worsen dramatically.

This is about elementary human needs, such as not being without heating in winter, about social and societal peace in our country and about livelihoods - be it private individuals or companies.

That is why even the Green Economics Minister Robert Habeck is very strongly committed to these LNG imports.

In the current acute situation, there is no alternative to maintaining the energy supply.

There is no way in the short term

to import significantly more natural gas from other countries via other pipelines.

There is not even a significant amount of hydrogen or bio natural gas available in the short term to replace the lack of natural gas.

And the so-called 'fuel switch', i.e. using other energy sources instead of natural gas, will only work to a limited extent, at least in the near future.

LNG is only an emergency or temporary solution.

Some of the LNG terminals are to be built “hydrogen-ready”, ie parts of the infrastructure can be used in the future to import hydrogen and its so-called derivatives, which we will urgently need in the long term for the energy transition anyway.

Over the next 20 years, Germany and the EU will massively expand renewable and sustainable forms of energy production and energy sources such as PV,

Wind power, the necessary power lines, hydrogen and its derivatives, e-fuels, bio-natural gas from waste and residues, etc. There are extensive legislative measures for this and very large sums of money are being invested in this area.

Germany must be climate neutral by 2045.

And that is certainly also in the interests of climate protection, sustainability and also of nature and landscape conservation.”

Kreisbote: The gas levy planned by the federal government provides that the energy suppliers can pass on the now higher gas procurement costs to their end consumers from October.

What about Präg?

Deisenhofer:

“We will collect the state gas surcharge from our end customers and pay it to Trading Hub Europe, a joint venture of the transmission system operators;

we do not receive any funds from this allocation ourselves.

And perhaps we should make this clear again here: The new gas procurement levy is not intended to finance or allocate all possible higher procurement costs of all possible energy suppliers.

Any beneficiaries of this levy decided by the federal government are only a small group of companies, namely exclusively the large natural gas importers, who now have to procure more expensive replacements for failed deliveries from Russia and, due to contractual regulations, cannot pass these additional costs on to their customers, or not in full.

The aim is to enable gas importers,

to protect those who cannot bear the resulting losses from insolvency with money from the levy, in order to ensure the functioning of the gas market and security of supply.

Unfortunately, it now appears that not all gas importers who have currently applied for help through this levy are really in need of help.

The legislature should urgently improve this, which is now supposed to happen.”

Kreisbote: Is there competition between countries on the energy market?

So is everyone going to do their own thing, or is it a business-to-business thing?

Deisenhofer:

"No.

The European Union is united under the motto 'Save Gas for a safe winter'.

It presented its gas emergency plan on July 20, 2022.

Among other things, it contains the following measures: Reduction of gas consumption by 15 percent from August 1 to March 31, 2023, initially on a voluntary basis.

By September, member states should adjust their national emergency plans accordingly and specify concrete measures as to how they want to achieve this goal.

The regulation provides that under certain circumstances, the Commission can also issue a Union security of supply alert, obliging members to make a binding reduction.

All in all, state coordination and cooperation in the EU are very important for guaranteeing the energy supply.”

Kreisbote: The freight transport association (BGL) had already warned last autumn that the logistics industry could collapse.

Diesel vehicles require the exhaust gas purifier AdBlue, a by-product of fertilizer production – a very energy-intensive industry.

The manufacturer SKW Piesteritz recently threatened to stop production.

The company demands, among other things, to be exempted from the gas surcharge, as do energy-intensive companies in general.

What is the situation in your delivery area?

Deisenhofer:

“To date, we have been able to supply our filling stations and customers with AdBlue as needed.

However, quantities in excess of this are currently difficult to obtain.

We continue to observe developments on the procurement markets very closely.”

Kreisbote: In June there was an incident at the Schwechat refinery in Austria.

Austria has released diesel reserves.

As a result of the incident, is there also a shortage in Germany?

BayWa probably no longer delivers diesel.

Deisenhofer:

“For a few weeks now, the provision of fuels in southern Germany has been characterized by a number of special factors.

In addition to the increased demand from Austria, these include above all the tense situation in rail logistics and the low water level on the Rhine.

We are hoping for some relaxation in the next few weeks: on the demand side due to the decline in travel at the end of the summer holidays and on the procurement side, for example due to a new federal ordinance giving priority to the transport of coal and oil by rail.

But especially with the upcoming oil sanctions and the fuel switches mentioned, there will also be some special influences on the mineral oil product supply in the coming months.”

Kreisbote: The topic is so frustrating and somber: you have already mentioned the planned climate neutrality by 2045.

Is there any other good news or bright spot?

Deisenhofer: "

In view of the current, really great challenges and problems, it is not exactly easy to speak of positive effects.

But if you ask so specifically: The positive thing is that the energy turnaround and the expansion of renewable and sustainable energy production are receiving an enormous boost and are being significantly intensified again as a result of the developments of the last few months.

The acute crisis could also mean that when shaping the energy transition, ideology, wishful thinking, short-term political tactics and prejudices take a back seat and instead everyone pulls together and takes joint measures on the basis of sober analysis based on factual information and facts work out.

That would at least be desirable, and I've seen some positive signs here over the last few months.

And I would like to emphasize this in view of the current circumstances: it is crucial for success that, in addition to environmental and climate compatibility, the security and affordability of the energy supply is always guaranteed for all measures.

Here it is essential to preserve social peace and our economic power.

People have to be involved in the really big changes and have to be able to manage them.”

Thank you for the interview!

As of midday Wednesday, August 31;

the situation is currently very dynamic.

Therefore, the situation at the publication date of the text may be different again.

Study on fracking

Harvard University School of Public Health study: “Exposure to unconventional oil and gas development and all-cause mortality in Medicare beneficiaries” (Lead: Longxiang Li), published in Nature Energy journal