LNG imports at record levels: Germany will be the gas hub of the future!

LNG imports at record levels: Germany will be the gas hub of the future!

The current developments in the area of ​​liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in Germany are remarkable. In the third quarter of 2025, a new record was recorded for feed-ins via German LNG terminals. How stern.de reported, the highest feed-in was achieved here since the first German LNG terminal opened in Wilhelmshaven at the end of 2022. From January to September 2025, more than 74 terawatt hours of LNG have already been imported, far exceeding the entire annual value of previous years. In 2024 this value was around 69 terawatt hours.

A look at the numbers shows that the share of LNG in total natural gas imports in Germany rose from 8% in the first half of 2025 to an impressive 13.25% in the third quarter. For the first nine months of the year this amounts to 10.9%. Infrastructure reinforcements and additional capacities are the key to this increase, especially since Germany has established itself as a transit country.

New terminal capacities and challenges

A decisive factor in the increase in LNG imports was the commissioning of the second floating LNG terminal in Wilhelmshaven at the end of August 2025. In addition, around 33 terawatt hours of LNG will arrive in the third quarter via the North Sea terminals in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel. However, there are restrictions at the Rügen terminal, which is not fully utilized due to port deepening and expansion.

The federal government has clearly spoken out in favor of expanding the LNG terminals in order to further reduce dependence on Russian gas supplies. The transport of natural gas via pipelines from Norway has also become more important. In this international market, however, Germany has to compete with prices on the Asian market and pays the corresponding world market prices for LNG.

Environmental concerns and terminal utilization

However, despite the increase in imports, there are significant concerns that cannot be forgotten. Environmentalists point out that the extraction of LNG as a fossil raw material remains controversial. The terminal on Rügen was the worst-performing project with a utilization rate of only 8%, while other terminals such as in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel also suffer from half-hearted utilization. German environmental aid therefore calls for the expansion plans to be stopped and warns that further expansion of the LNG infrastructure could endanger the climate goals.

The distribution of LNG imports shows that in 2024, about 86 percent of imported LNG came from the United States, where the environmental risks from fracking are controversial. Critical voices complain that the long-term approval until 2043 could cement fossil energy supplies, which represents a major challenge for future environmental policy.

Conclusion

In summary, Germany is on a remarkable path to diversifying its energy supply, but is also facing significant environmental and structural challenges. The development of LNG imports could be an important step towards the energy transition, provided environmental concerns are taken seriously and addressed. It currently remains to be seen how the entire infrastructure will develop and whether the planned terminal expansions can actually be implemented in the planned time. Loud NDR The increase in the LNG share could progress even further once all new terminals are fully connected and their capacity is exhausted.