BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 5
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The total volume of natural gas sold by Germany-based Uniper company in fiscal 2020 was 2,205.9 billion kWh (2019: 2,179.3 billion kWh), Trend reports with reference to the company.
During the same period, the Uniper Group acquired a total volume of natural gas of 2,213.9 billion kWh (2019: 2,176.0 billion kWh). The vast majority of the volumes moved result from transactions on domestic and foreign trading markets, which are carried out to manage the Group’s own gas-fired power plants, to optimize booked natural gas storage or transport capacities, and to commercially exploit regional price differences, among other things.
Uniper sells natural gas to resellers (e.g. municipal utilities), large industrial customers and power plant operators through its internal sales unit Uniper Energy Sales GmbH (UES). The volume of gas sold by UES in fiscal 2020 came to 218.0 billion kWh, noticeably above the prior year’s volume (199.0 billion kWh). There were negative volume effects compared with the sales volume planned for 2020 due to another very mild winter and spring as well as low purchases, especially by industrial customers, caused by the Covid-19 pandemic (short working hours, lockdown) in the second quarter. However, sales volumes were higher overall compared to the prior year due to the signing of new customers and contracts.
The procurement of natural gas is largely based on long-term contracts with suppliers from Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Russia. In fiscal 2020, Uniper had long-term contracts amounting to 368 billion kWh (2019: 379 billion kWh).
Uniper Energy Storage GmbH is responsible for the operation of gas storage for the Uniper Group. Its activities include technical and commercial development, the construction and operation of underground storage facilities for natural gas, the marketing of capacities, services and products on the European storage market and the development of new storage technologies. Uniper Energy Storage GmbH manages natural gas storage facilities in Germany and Austria. In addition, a British Uniper Group company operates a gas storage facility in the United Kingdom. In 2020, gas storage capacity stood at 7.6 billion m³, a slight decline of 0.1 billion m³ below the level of the previous year (7.7 billion m³), due primarily to the expiration of a storage agreement.
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