For Thierry Found (GRTgaz), the probability of a gas deficit this winter is “very, very low”

France has never had gas reserves so full. According to GRTgaz forecasts, “the probability of a gas deficit at the end of winter is very, very low”, even “almost zero”, said its general director Thierry Oublie on Monday, January 23 at the BFM Business branch.

“Our warehouses are more crowded than usual,” Thierry Trouvé said, welcoming “a historically high level” of “80% fill level” in mid-January, up from the usual 57% in the same period.

However, they will have to be emptied, says the general director of GRTgaz. “Several French storage facilities are somewhat complex geological formations and need to breathe to maintain their technical performance,” he explains. To do this, “we are going to take advantage of it” and bring “a little less from outside”.

The general director of GRTgaz salutes the efforts of the French in terms of energy sobriety and affirms that it is necessary to “continue”. Gas consumption in France fell 12.2% in December compared to the same period in 2018, according to the country’s gas pipeline manager.

The equivalent of “all Russian gas” produced by 2030

However, a “very significant drop in industrial consumption due to price levels” stands out. “Our industry must not remain paralyzed, it must restart,” declared Thierry Trouvé. To do this, “the industry will have to start producing with gas again,” he added.

To compensate for the absence of Russian gas next winter, “in September we will have a new gas entry into France, a floating terminal in Le Havre (…) capable of bringing us half of what we imported in the form of Russian gas before “, the general manager of GRTgaz rejoiced.

Another element: “the development of biomethane” that will allow in 2023 to fill “the equivalent of 12% of Russian gas”, according to Thierry Found. According to the general director of GRTgaz, the gas sector will be able to produce the equivalent of “all the Russian gas” that France imported by 203O and “all the gas that will be consumed in France will be gas of renewable or carbon neutral origin” by 2050.