Germany to build strategic gas reserve, consumers face new levy to cover €1.5 billion cost
The German government is set to approve a strategic gas reserve of 24 terawatt hours in mid-August, financed by a new levy on gas consumers. The reserve aims to protect against sabotage and import outages.
The German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz is moving forward with plans for a strategic gas reserve, with a cabinet decision expected in mid-August. The reserve would hold 24 terawatt hours of gas, roughly 10 percent of the country's total storage capacity, and is designed exclusively for extreme crisis scenarios such as infrastructure sabotage or a global gas shortage.
Scope and cost
The reserve is not intended for seasonal winter supply, which remains the responsibility of traders and utilities. Instead, it would serve as an emergency buffer managed by the Bundesnetzagentur, the federal network agency. The ministry concept estimates setup costs at 1.2 to 1.5 billion euros, spread over 2027 and 2028, with annual operating expenses of 150 to 180 million euros.
Financing through a consumer levy
The entire cost would be financed by a new levy on gas consumers, adding to household and business energy bills. The levy is expected to be lower than the previous gas storage surcharge, which expired at the end of 2025 and stood at 0.289 cents per kilowatt hour. The government plans to stretch procurement over two to three years to minimize market price impacts. First storage bookings are scheduled for winter 2026/27, with initial filling in summer 2027.
Political reaction
The opposition Greens welcomed the initiative but warned about timing.
The Bundestag is expected to hold its first debate on the proposal at the end of September.It is right to introduce a gas reserve. However, the planned filling next year comes too late for this winter. Another nail-biter threatens.
Coverage scenarios
The reserve is sized to cover a 30-day outage of the Dornum landing point in Lower Saxony, the largest import infrastructure handling Norwegian pipeline gas. Internal calculations show 24 TWh could also cover around 40 days of lost LNG imports, or 10 days of full supply to households and businesses in an extreme winter with all pipeline and LNG imports cut. In a normal winter, it would last 18 days.
- 30-day Dornum outage
- 30 days
- 40-day LNG outage
- 40 days
- 10-day extreme winter
- 10 days
- 18-day normal winter
- 18 days
Storage context
The plan follows a winter in which German gas storage levels fell to just 20 percent at times. As of July 6, storage was at 42.88 percent, well below levels of recent years. One energy expert, quoted by Berliner Zeitung, called the reserve an "expensive band-aid," though the ministry argues it is a necessary precaution against supply shocks.
- Cabinet decision on reserve
- Bundestag first debate
- First storage bookings
- First filling begins
