“The climate targets of the “Fit for 55” strategy restrict the development of gas supply to some extent. However, the events in Ukraine have shown that gas remains a key area of discussion throughout Europe,” Robert Perkowski, PGNiG Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, said during the Gazterm 2022 conference.
The European “Fit for 55” strategy is a package of legislation aimed at achieving a 55 percent reduction in CO2 emissions by 2030 compared to 1990. REPowerUE, on the other hand, is a package of measures related to the exit from Russian gas supplies.
“Connecting the two aims – climate and security – is extremely difficult. The former excludes the development of the gas industry to some extent,” Robert Perkowski said during the panel discussion “Security Turnaround – Energy Independence and Decarbonisation in the Light of REPowerUE and Fit for 55.”
According to the company’s representative, the current situation related to the war in Ukraine has overshadowed the energy transition and natural gas has become one of the main topics of discussion in Europe.
“At the moment, all states and energy companies in the region are looking for ways to diversify and duplicate existing logistics chains to supply them with gaseous fuels,” Vice President Robert Perkowski said.
In his opinion, the development of renewable energy in many countries of the European Union requires the maintenance or expansion of existing gas infrastructures.
“Poland has gas storage facilities. The seasonal fluctuations associated with the increased consumption of blue fuel in winter can be compensated for, among other things, by the accumulated stocks,” Vice President Perkowski noted.
“The development of renewable energy must be based on the safety component. With pure wind or solar energy, it is not possible to cover the total demand. In the meantime, gas plays the role of a stabilizer and enables the balancing of renewable energy,” he added.
Natural gas is an ideal transformative fuel. The current crisis in the energy market began last autumn but was sealed by the war in Ukraine.
Gaseous fuel continues to be used throughout Europe. “Let’s look at the Germans, the leaders in promoting zero-emission solutions in the region, who have declared to build two new terminals for the extraction of liquefied natural gas by the end of this year,” Perkowski said. “LNG gas is to be used mainly in industry and heat generation”, he added.
“Maintaining the security of energy supply and striving for climate neutrality are objectives that must be pursued in parallel. Natural gas is the fuel with which they can be filled”, said the Vice President of PGNiG.