Defeat for environmentalists
Court dismisses lawsuits against LNG pipeline in the Baltic Sea
April 25, 2024, 12:18 p.m
The project is highly controversial; the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig is now dismissing the lawsuits of two environmental organizations. This means that the gas pipeline from Rügen to Lubmin can go into operation as planned.
According to the Federal Administrative Court, the approval for the connection line to the controversial Rügen terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is legal. The Leipzig court has dismissed lawsuits from German Environmental Aid (DUH) and the German Nature Conservation Association (NABU). The court announced that the waiver of an environmental impact assessment (EIA) during approval was legal because the Rügen terminal was used to deal with a gas supply crisis.
DUH and NABU had sued to have the plan approval decision of August 2023 revoked. They had already failed before the Leipzig court last year with urgent applications aimed at stopping construction.
In view of the Russian attack on Ukraine, the federal government pushed the expansion of its own import infrastructure for LNG in order to become more independent of Russian gas. With the LNG Acceleration Act, the legislature has created the possibility of foregoing an environmental impact assessment.
Gas shortage situation still applies
The court wrote that the accelerated approval of the first maritime section of the line is likely to make a relevant contribution to addressing the ongoing gas supply crisis resulting from the cessation of Russian gas deliveries and the destruction of the Nord Stream pipelines. “The alert level of the gas emergency plan applied at the time of the plan approval decision and continues to apply.”
Critics have long argued that there is no longer a gas shortage, that the Rügen terminal creates unneeded excess capacity and is damaging to the environment and nature. The federal government defended it with reference to energy supply security.
Full performance until summer
The approximately 50 kilometer long connection line through the Baltic Sea has been completed and connects the Rügen terminal with the gas pipeline junction on the mainland in Lubmin. The special ship “Energos Power” is already moored in the port of Mukran and has been feeding in gas in trial operations since the beginning of March. In the future, another so-called regasification ship will take in LNG delivered by ship, convert it and feed it in via the connection line. According to previous information, regular operations should begin in mid-May at the latest and full performance should be achieved by summer.
With the new decision from Leipzig, the last word has not yet been spoken in connection with the LNG terminal. The municipality of Binz, which is not far from the terminal, had announced that it would sue the Federal Administrative Court against the approval of regular operations and submit an urgent application directed against the operation. According to previous information, the DUH is also considering such a step.