New impetus from Brunsbüttel for energy transformation
The DGB Nord, German Trade Union Confederation North and the IG BCE, the Mining, Chemical and Energy Industries Union welcome plans for Germany’s first LNG terminal in Brunsbüttel and demand further expansion of renewable energies.
DGB Nord and IG BCE are alive to the crucial importance and the challenges of climate protection. They are committed to clear, mandatory climate protection targets as resolved, among other issues, in 2015 in Paris. A safe, competitive energy supply, which takes the agreed climate protection targets into account, forms the basis for a successful industrial services site. It is on this basis that DGB Nord and IG BCE welcome the progressive plans for the LNG terminal in Brunsbüttel. They had jointly invited the Managing Director of the German LNG Terminal GmbH to a video conference to discuss the status of the plans at first hand. Uwe Polkaehn, the Chairman of DGB Nord and Andreas Suß, Regional Manager, IG BCE Schleswig-Holstein therefore stressed the importance of the future terminal for employment and economic growth in Brunsbüttel and the region.
"Ultimately we need to make fundamental and measurable inroads into reducing greenhouse gases, especially in industry and in traffic. Otherwise time will run out. We have no time to wait for sufficiently green hydrogen. We must start right now to use all the technological approaches, capable of bringing about a reduction. The terminal is a unique opportunity to achieve this," states Uwe Polkaehn. "It will make the site more attractive to industry in this economically underdeveloped region. On one hand it can make a contribution to securing a reliable, efficient energy supply for the local, energy-intensive industry in the ChemCoast Park. On the other the terminal will provide an infrastructure, which can also be used for increasingly climate-neutral energy sources, such as renewable LNG. Consequently, this is a future-proof infrastructure, which will be a significant factor in making Brunsbüttel and the region a location for the energy supply of the future. There is fresh impetus for energy transformation." Polkaehn also advocated rapid expansion of renewable energies.
Andreas Suß added: "As workers' representatives we know that one of the central responsibilities of our age is the de-carbonisation of the chemical, energy, traffic and heating sectors. Energy transformation gives the unions significant opportunities in employment and industrial policy. We must link the issues of energy and climate protection from the viewpoint of employment, social and industrial policy and give fresh impetus to energy transformation. Significant changes in direction are also on the agenda for the frequently energy-intensive, co-managed businesses here on the west coast. Our aim is to secure good employment prospects in the region."
Rolf Brouwer, the Managing Director of German LNG Terminal GmbH, emphasised on the contribution of the terminal to economic development in the region. Seventy jobs will be created in a shift system at the terminal itself. The indirect effects, however, would also be decisive. For example services in port operations are also involved and subcontractors are being engaged for the permanent maintenance of the terminal. He was therefore assuming that the ChemCoast Park would increasingly attract industry and more companies would set up on the vacant sites still available.
Link to the unions‘ position paper on energy policy
The DGB North Region includes the Federal States of Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In the three states put together the unions have more than 400,000 members. The DGB is the Confederation of the German Trade Unions. Together, the confederation and the member unions represent the corporate, economic, social and cultural interests of the workers.
The Mining, Chemical and Energy Industries Union (IG BCE) in the Schleswig-Holstein region represents the interests of some 9,000 members in a variety of sectors. Its organisational area includes the chemical, energy, crude oil and natural gas, glass, paper and cement industries. These are companies in energy supply or which have a high energy requirement and for this reason the IG BCE has a reputation for reliability, sustainability and being fluctuation-proof. The IG BCE is characterised by a high degree of organisation and a very wide positioning on the works councils. It is a very active creator of structural change and promotes sustainability in economic and social energy transformation.
Wealth of experience — German LNG Terminal and the shareholding companies
German LNG Terminal GmbH is a joint venture between Dutch companies Gasunie LNG Holding B.V. and Vopak LNG Holding B.V. as well as Oiltanking GmbH, a subsidiary of Marquard & Bahls AG based in Hamburg, Germany. The aim of the joint venture is to build and operate a multifunctional import and distribution terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Brunsbüttel. The terminal will also provide a wide range of services including the loading and unloading of LNG carriers, the temporary storage of LNG, regasification, feeding natural gas into the German natural gas network, and distribution of LNG via tank trucks and LNG tank cars.
German LNG Terminal opted for the location at Brunsbüttel because of its proximity to the port of Hamburg and the many manufacturing companies based in the region. Along with this attractive business environment, the Kiel Canal also runs close to the planned terminal, which provides easy access to the Scandinavian and Baltic countries. www.GermanLNG.com