Gas supply: Federal government wants to create gas reserve for supply crises – Reiche holds to surcharge

As of 2027, a national gas reserve is planned to mitigate risks in supply, particularly in extreme cases or sabotage scenarios. The reserve will be funded through a surcharge on gas consumers. When operational, the reserve will enable the Federal Network Agency to secure supply during critical stages. The reserve is expected to amount to 24 billion kilowatt-hours, representing roughly 10% of Germany's current storage capacity.

This volume aims to cover various scenarios, such as 30 days of outage from the primary import infrastructure, 20 days of loss from Norwegian pipeline imports, 40 days of LNG terminal failure, and 18 days of full supply for households and businesses during extreme winter conditions. The surcharge on gas consumers, estimated to cost between 3.77 and 7.20 Euros annually, will amount to 247 to 308 million Euros per year.

Critics argue that this should be funded through the federal budget rather than imposing additional costs on consumers and gas distributors. The reserve is expected to be filled by October 2027, but currently stands at 59%. The reserve will not replace the market mechanism for filling gas storage, but will only be used as a last resort in physical bottlenecks. Market participants should not rely on the reserve for supply security.