Depogaz has put out to tender two projects to increase the capacity for storage, extraction and injection of natural gas in Romania.

At the same time, the government intends to reintroduce the minimum deposit requirement amid market tensions caused by the war between Russia and Ukraine. A similar discussion is taking place today between the Member States of the European Union.

On the other hand, the gas quotations indicate, at this hour, a decrease below 190 euros in the conditions in which on Monday the price had reached the historical quota of 345 euros per MWh, according to RRA.

Depogaz’s two projects will increase its storage capacity by another 450 million cubic meters (mmc), and its extraction capacity will increase from 30 mmc to almost 40 mmc per day. The director of Depogaz, Vasile Cârstea, says that in parallel with the increase of storage capacity, in Romania the gas production can increase rapidly by another 6 mmc per day from onshore operations.

Thus, cumulatively, the storage and onshore production could lead to deliveries of over 60 mmc per day, which is equivalent for Vasile Cârstea to independence from Russian gas.

“We are talking about the Caragele deposit, which has a geological reserve estimated at this time somewhere at 30 billion, we are talking about deposits in the Fulga, Meri, Snagov, Boteni area, in the southern part of Bucharest,” says Vasile Cârstea.

On the background of the same market tensions, the Minister of Energy, Virgil Popescu, has already declared that government will reintroduce the obligation of the suppliers to store certain quantities of gas.