Mit einem flammenden Appell für die pragmatische Transformation zu grünen Gasen hat die DGMK-Konferenz "Hydrogen and Syngas – Platform for a sustainable future" der DGMK in Essen eröffnet.
With a fervent appeal for the pragmatic transformation toward green gases, the DGMK conference “Hydrogen and Syngas – Platform for a Sustainable Future,” organized by the DGMK in Essen, was opened.
The DGMK specialist divisions for Petrochemistry and Carbon Carrier Conversion are bringing together representatives from industry and academia in Essen on October 28 and 29 to discuss developments in the fields of hydrogen and syngases. In their welcoming remarks, Gesa Netzeband, Managing Director of the DGMK, and Dieter Vogt, Head of the DGMK Petrochemistry Division, prepared the roughly 100 participants for the program of the DGMK conference “Hydrogen and Syngas – Platform for a Sustainable Future” and for the challenges associated with ramping up hydrogen (H₂).
Bengt Bergt then spoke in favor of a pragmatic and gradual decarbonization of the gas sector. The Head of Public Affairs at the lobbying association “Die Gas- und Wasserstoffwirtschaft” (formerly Zukunft Gas) delivered the event’s opening lecture. Bergt, a former SPD member of the German Bundestag, has been responsible for the association’s political communications since June 2025. He advocated for a realistic path in the decarbonization of natural gas and opposed a rigid “color doctrine” when it comes to climate-friendlier gases – that is, against committing exclusively to green hydrogen during the ramp-up phase.
Need for Electrons and Molecules
The goal on the path to a fossil-free future, he said, must be not only the effective reduction of CO₂ but also ensuring security of supply and economic efficiency. In 2024, natural gas still accounted for 26 percent of Germany’s primary energy consumption.
If the transition to alternatives such as biomass, biogas, or hydrogen continues at its current pace, Germany will not achieve climate neutrality until 2080 – rather than by 2045 as mandated by policymakers. However, Bergt does not take a pessimistic view of the hydrogen ramp-up: industry, he said, has not abandoned its projects but merely postponed them.
Both industry and private households will continue to depend on gases, and replacing them with renewables, given Germany’s gas consumption across all sectors – 835 billion kWh in 2024 according to the BDEW – is still a long way off. The federal government must therefore learn that “we need both – electrons and molecules,” Bergt said. To decarbonize the gas sector, he reiterated the proposal for a green gas quota that his association presented in March, emphasizing that it must not conflict with European Emissions Trading System (ETS) regulations.
The concept of the green gas quota is based on a market-oriented approach, functioning without subsidies and also through penalty payments. The gas lobby is pushing to keep the requirements flexible enough to allow the industry to carry forward quotas into the following year. All of this, Bergt said, could help reduce uncertainty within the industry and free up capital for investment.
No Way Around LNG Imports
After the move away from Russian natural gas, Germany now sources about 40 percent of its gas from Norway and another 30 percent from the Benelux countries, according to Bergt. The pipeline from Norway represents a security vulnerability, which is why LNG imports via the newly constructed terminals will continue to be necessary.
In addition, Bergt raised the prospect of biomethane imports from Ukraine. By 2030, an annual potential of 11 billion kWh could be achieved, and transport could be carried out via the existing pipeline network. However, current regulatory conditions still make it difficult to procure the green gas. Such imports would nevertheless be desirable, he noted, as they would provide Ukraine – suffering under Russia’s war of aggression – with additional revenue.
Finally, Bergt emphasized the system relevance of gas storage facilities. Battery storage systems for securing electrical energy are important and must be expanded. By 2030, however, electricity storage will be able to provide only around 30 million kWh, whereas gas storage facilities, with a capacity of 256 billion kWh in 2030, will offer many times that amount. This demonstrates, he said, the flexibility inherent in gas storage and the connected networks.
