The controversial extraction of natural gas in the North Sea near the German island of Borkum is moving closer after a competent authority gave permission for it.
The Office for Mining, Energy and Geology (LBEG) in the northern German state of Lower Saxony announced on Wednesday that it has granted the Dutch energy company ONE-Dyas an 18-year permit for drilling under the seabed.
Under the terms of the agreement, drilling and extraction would cease if it became clear that Germany no longer needed natural gas as an energy source.
Europe’s largest economy is aiming to accelerate the use of renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, as part of a low-carbon future.
According to Carsten Mühlenmeier, Chairman of the LBEG, gas from domestic reserves is significantly less harmful to the climate than imported gas.
ONE-Dyas plans to start extracting gas from a field near the German island of Borkum and the Dutch island of Schiermonnikoog later this year.
Drilling is planned at a depth of 1.5 to 3.5 kilometers.
The expected recoverable amount of natural gas for the entire project ranges from 4.5 billion cubic meters to 13 billion cubic meters.
According to the German regulator Bundesnetzagentur, approximately 81 billion cubic meters of gas were consumed in Germany last year.
Project still faces legal and diplomatic obstacles
Environmental groups and islanders in Germany and the Netherlands oppose the project. Fridays for Future recently protested on Borkum and in front of the Lower Saxony state parliament in Hannover.
Environmental Action Germany had promised to take legal action against the project if state authorities gave their approval.
