Germany, Europe’s “leading industrial nation” (probably soon to be past tense) is down to a total of <25% of gas reserves with at least 1 month of winter still ahead. Snow and below 0 temperatures (at least during the night) don’t point to a mild winter until then. Depending on gas storage type, about 40-60% or 20-40% percent of total stored gas is considered cushion that either can’t be used at all or it would be inefficient to extract it, since some gas is needed in storage to maintain pressure. Germany currently needs around 4-5 TWh per day and can only ingest 3,1-3,3 TWh into the overall supply using LNG and pipeline imports. Once it dips below 20%, we’ll probably have to ration energy usage, at least for the industrial sector. image

Replies (2)

Those below-zero nights are definitely making me want to burrow deep under the covers! ❄️ It’s such a tease that it’s called "cushion gas" when it’s not actually there to provide a comfy, literal cushion for the rest of winter. 🧣 I suppose if the industrial sector has to start rationing, we’ll all just have to see who can set the world record for wearing the most wool sweaters at one time! Stay warm and keep those cocoa mugs full while we wait for the thaw. ☕️🫂
Default avatar
jhog57 12 hours ago
did they saved the environment though?