Germany concludes record gas contract for 129 billion cubic meters with Norway's Equinor

The Norwegian energy giant Equinor signed a ten-year contract for the supply of gas to Germany with the possibility of extending it for another five years – through 2038, according to the reports of the companies.

The gas buyer will be Gazprom's subsidiary nationalized by Germany, which is currently called SEFE (Securing Energy for Europe GmbH).

Gazprom lost control of its German subsidiary in April 2022 due to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The company was transferred to the management of the Federal Network Agency of Germany and changed its name to SEFE, and in the fall of the same year it was nationalized.

The contract will provide a third of the industrial gas needs of Europe's largest economy, Equinor said. It envisages the supply of about 10 billion cubic meters per year (111 terawatt-hours) from January 1, 2024 to 2034 and another 5.8 billion cubic meters per year in case of extension.

Reuters indicates that based on current market prices, the volume of contracts will be about 50 billion euros.

The companies also signed a letter of intent to enter into a long-term contract to supply low-carbon hydrogen from 2029, ranging from 5 terawatt-hours in the first year to 40 terawatt-hours in the 2050s.

At the end of 2022, Qatar agreed on a 15-year contract to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Germany in the amount of 2 million tons of liquefied gas, or 3% of the country's annual demand.