VNG to offer more German VTP gas storage space

Germany's VNG Gasspeicher will this summer auction gas storage space connected to the country's new VTP (Trading Hub Europe) for April 2022-March 2023.

VNG will auction 1TWh of space in 1GWh bundles, with varying injection and withdrawal capacities, depending on the bidder's chosen configuration (see table).

The standard bundle configuration would include a maximum injection capacity of 14.4 MWh/d and a maximum withdrawal capacity of 19.7 MWh/d. This would allow the space to be filled in 102 days and emptied in 73, according to VNG's injection and withdrawal curves — equivalent to about 2.09 turns over the storage year.

It would take 174 days to fill the space and 178 days to empty it under the minimum configuration, and just 51 days to fill and 45 to empty it under the maximum configuration.

But maximum injection capacity for the entire 1TWh offered will be capped at 14.4 GWh/d, and maximum withdrawal capacity at 19.7 GWh/d, in line with what is offered under the standard configuration.

Available injection and withdrawal capacity would be similar to capacity offered at an upcoming auction for storage space connected to the Gaspool market area for the 2021-22 storage year.

The auction will take place at 14:00-14:30 local time (13:00-13:30 BST) on VNG's website on a date between 20 July and 30 September, with interested parties given at least one day's notice of the exact date.

Bids have to be submitted on a fixed-price basis. Variable fees will be set "according [to the] adjustment formula", the firm said. VNG is levying a variable injection fee of €0.495/MWh this storage year, and is auctioning the Gaspool-connected space for the upcoming storage year with an injection fee of €0.485/MWh.

The capacity will be available at VNG's VGS storage hub, which combines the Bad Lauchstadt and Bernburg facilities. The hub is currently linked to Gaspool.

But Gaspool is scheduled to be merged with Germany's other market area, NCG, into Trading Hub Europe from 1 October 2021.

The storage operator received strong interest at an auction on 24 June for VGS storage hub capacity linked to the German VTP — available for the entire April 2022-March 2024 period, rather than for the individual storage years — allocating all 1TWh offered.

The Gaspool summer 2022 market has widened its discount to winter 2022-23 following the previous auction, but held tighter than the summer 2021-winter 2021-22 storage spread. The summer 2022 price closed €2.30/MWh below the following winter contract, out from €2.15/MWh below on 24 June (see graph).

The operator has already allocated about 15TWh of space for the 2022-23 gas year of the 19.9TWh available at the VGS storage hub, with reserved capacity falling further in subsequent storage years.

By Jacob Mandel

Gaspool storage spreads €/MWh