The LNG plant in Stade –about 50 kilometres from Hamburg, Germany– is now a reality. Around 150 people, including partners and collaborators, attended the official ceremony of laying its first stone. Enagas has a 15% stake in Hanseatic Energy Hub (HEH), the consortium behind the terminal, and will be the main operator of this infrastructure.
The plant will come into operation in 2027 and will be Key to security of supply in EuropeIt will also become an important energy hub for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other hydrogen-based energy carriers in Germany, connecting key renewable hydrogen production sites with storage facilities and industrial consumers.
Enagás is the company in charge of operating the plant, which is fully aligned with its strategy of contributing to the security of energy supply and promoting decarbonisation in Europe. “The start of construction of this project represents a milestone for the company, New step forward in meeting European objectives security of supply and decarbonisation. As a technical partner and operator of the Stade terminal, Enagás brings its experience in the development of an LNG terminal ready to operate with green ammonia“which will be key for Germany and Europe,” says its CEO, Arturo Gonzalo.
More than 1,100 people will work during the construction so that, those who will be Europe’s two largest LNG tankers (which will be ready to operate also with renewable ammonia and will have a capacity of 240,000 m3 each), can be connected to the grid in three years.
German energy companies EnBW and SEFE have booked capacities of 6 and 4 bcm per year respectively at the terminal and Czech energy company CEZ has secured long-term import rights of 2 bcm per year. In addition, as part of the drive to the energy transition process in their respective countries, all customers have the right to option to change their contracts to energy vectors based on hydrogensuch as ammonia.
It will be ready to operate with green ammonia
The Hanseatic Energy Hub (HEH) is the consortium behind the future flexible liquefied natural gas terminal in the Stade industrial park. This independent hub secures and diversifies competitive energy imports in Germany. In the initial phase, a zero-emission LNG terminal with infrastructure suitable for bioLNG and SNG is planned to be operational from 2027. The planned regasification capacity is 13.3 bcm per year with an emission capacity of 21.7 GWh/h. By promoting new climate-neutral energy sources, the hub will enable the import of energy vectors based on green hydrogen.