BRINGING LNG TO GERMANY

Holger Kreetz, COO & CSO at Uniper, explains how the company’s game changing FLNG unit is delivering on Germany’s energy security. THE IDEA for a floating LNG unit in Germany was first considered in the 1970s. In that way, Uniper places itself well and truly ahead of the curve. ‘Uniper bought the land back in the 70s and had the designs drawn up,’ says chief operating officer and chief sustainability officer, Holger Kreetz. However, the project wasn’t feasible in the 70s, so it was attempted again between 2018 and 2020, to no avail. ‘There weren’t enough bookers, so it was shelved,’ says Kreetz. While it may have taken 40 years to get to this point, Germany now has a functioning FLNG unit, thanks to Uniper and its collaboration with the German government, NPorts and Open Grid Europe (OGE). ‘Around the start of the Ukraine war, we were approached by the German government,’ says Kreetz. ‘They knew about the history we had and thought that some of the Russian gas could be replaced. We could make Germany independent through building LNG terminals in Germany; something that has never been done.’ DISRUPTING THE INDUSTRY So, Uniper poured its resources into...