Dutch natural gas storage facilities 50% filled for winter

Filling accelerated in May when the Dutch government offered a 400-million-euro subsidy for gas companies to fill a storage facility at Bergermeer during the summer filling season, which runs from April 1 to Oct. 1, Reuters reported.

It also expects to pay 6.5b euros for filling the storage at Norg, one of the country's other main facilities, through 2023.

The government is targeting having storages filled on average to 80% by winter, in line with provisional European targets.

The 4.1 billion cubic meter (bcm) Taqa-operated site at Bergermeer, in which Russia's Gazprom owns rights to 40% of capacity, is currently just 35% filled. In 2021 Gazprom did not make use of the Bergermeer site.

The Dutch government is targeting filling Bergermeer to 68% by winter – including part of Gazprom's capacity – under a "use it or lose it" clause.

To reach 80% on average for all Dutch storage facilities, other sites will need to be filled to capacity.