More Natural Gas For Europe
German-Russian joint venture WINGAS is calling for natural gas to play a stronger role in the European energy mix. “Politicians must finally recognize the value of natural gas as an environmentally friendly energy and promote it as a natural partner of renewable energies,”Dr. Gerhard König, Chairman of WINGAS, explained to our offshore reporter Vincent Vinkoert in Brussels recently. “This requires a sustainable European energy policy from the new EU Commission,” he added. In particular, Dr. König said it was necessary for policy-makers to prepare the political groundwork for an increased use of natural gas for electricity generation. Meanwhile, WINGAS, a joint venture of BASF subsidiary Wintershall and Russia’s Gazprom, continues on its growth course in Europe. In Belgium, the company is supplying Russian natural gas to resellers for the first time and increased quantities to power plant operators. WINGAS has also expanded its sales activities to the Netherlands. Belgium and the Netherlands will also profit from an improved natural gas infrastructure in northern Germany and new storage facilities in the border region in future, in which WINGAS Group is planning to invest more than one billion euros.