Dutch Government Confirms Plans to Produce 2.8 Bcm of Gas from Groningen
The Dutch government has disclosed plans to produce 2.8 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas at the Groningen gas field in the current year through Oct. 1.
In a statement, the Ministry of Economic Affairs said it will close the field permanently by Oct. 1, 2024, leaving open the possibility of minimal production next year.
The Dutch government has been winding down production at Grongingen due to earthquakes.
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About Grongingen Gas Field
The Groningen gas field was discovered in 1959 by the Dutch Petroleum Company (Nederlandse Aardolie Maatschappij; NAM) when searching for oil.
The production of gas from this field started in 1963. Since its discovery the estimations of its size have been adjusted upwards frequently. In 1959 the size was estimated at about 60 billion m3, in 1962 it was estimated at 470 billion m3 rising to 2000 billion m3 in 1967 to end up at an astonishing estimated total size of 2800 billion m3.
The gas quality of the Groningen gas field differs from most other fields in the world. The Groningen gas contains a relatively high part of Nitrogen (14%) and a lower amount of energy per m3 than most other gas. This is why it’s called low calorific gas. High calorific gas can be found in the small Dutch gas fields and also the gas that is imported from Russia and Norway belongs to this class.
More than 75% of the gas has already been produced since 1963 and has played a large role in the Dutch economy and welfare since then. Not only around 93% of the Dutch population utilizes this gas for their stoves and boilers, but also large parts of the German, Belgian and Northern-France population.
