Gasunie
| Type | Naamloze Vennootschap; state-owned company |
|---|---|
| Industry | energy |
| Founded | 1963 |
| Headquarters | Groningen, The Netherlands |
| Area served | Netherlands, Germany |
| Key people | Paul van Gelder (CEO) |
| Services | natural gas transportation |
| Revenue |
 €1.506 million (2009) |
| Employees | 1,448 |
| Website | gasunie.nl/en/ |
N.V. Nederlandse Gasunie (short form: Gasunie) is a Dutch natural gas infrastructure and transportation company operating in the Netherlands and Germany. Gasunie owns the Netherlands gas transmission network with a total length of over 12,000 kilometres (7,500 mi) and 3,100 kilometres (1,900 mi) long network in Germany.
History
Gasunie was founded in 1963 as a public-private partnership of Royal Dutch Shell (25%), ExxonMobil (25%) and the state of the Netherlands (50%) to sell and distribute natural gas from the then recently discovered gasfield in the province of Groningen.
In 2005 the company was divided into a gas trading company (now called GasTerra) and a gas transportation company which kept the name Gasunie. The latter owns and operates the Dutch gas transmission network as well as the former BEB pipeline network in Germany, and a major pipeline connecting The Netherlands with the United Kingdom called the BBL Pipeline. In 2005, the split of Gasunie took place through a buy out by the Dutch State of the shares held by Shell and ExxonMobil in the infrastructure part of Gasunie. Therefore Gasunie is now 100% state owned. The Dutch Ministry of Finance represents the Government's shareholder interest. Ownership of GasTerra is divided the same way as Gasunie before 2005.
Current activities
Gasunie is a shareholder of ICE Endex, a European gas spot and derivatives exchange.
Gasunie owns 60% of the BBL Pipeline between the Netherlands and England. It also has 9% of shares in Nord Stream AG, the project company for the Nord Stream pipeline.[1] Gasunie has agreed to have a 20% stake in NEL pipeline which will connect Nord Stream with the German gas system.[2]
Gasunie owns 42.5% of Gate Terminal, the first LNG import terminal in the Netherlands, on the Maasvlakte. Following successful cooperation with GTS, Gate was brought into operation on the planned date of 1 September 2011.
At the end of October 2010, Gasunie became a 25% shareholder in the Rotterdam-based company Rotterdamse Cintra Maatschappij B.V. Cintra is exploring the possibilities for developing services for the transport of CO2 from emitter to storage operator in Rotterdam.
Gasunie established Vertogas on 2 July 2009 for the purpose of issuing certificates which guarantee the origin and volume produced of green gas.
In January 2011 Gasunie Zuidwending became operational. This is a new underground storage facility in Zuidwending, the north of the Netherlands.
In 2007, Gasunie bought the BEB's transportation unit BEB Erdgas und Erdoel GmbH, a German natural gas pipeline network operator, from Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil.[3][4]
See also
References
- ↑ "Gazprom and Gasunie sign agreement on cooperation within Nord Stream and BBL projects" (Press release). Gazprom. 2007-11-06. Retrieved 2007-11-06.
- ↑ "Gasunie takes NEL berth". Upstream Online (NHST Media Group). 2010-06-11. (subscription required). Retrieved 2010-06-12.
- ↑ "Duo sell BEB to Gasunie". Upstream Online (NHST Media Group). 2007-11-23. (subscription required). Retrieved 2007-11-24.
- ↑ "Shell und Exxon stoßen deutsche Gasspeicher ab" [Shell and Exxon repel German gas storage]. Financial Times Deutschland (in German). 2010-06-08. Retrieved 2010-06-13.