Storengy (GDF SUEZ) closed its agreement to buy 5 natural gas underground storage facilities in Germany and a 19.7% stake in another one. The transaction announced 31 January 2011 covers the storage facilities held by BEB Speicher GmbH and by ExxonMobil Gasspeicher Deutschland GmbH: Uelsen (100% BEB), Harsefeld (100% BEB), Schmidhausen (1/3 BEB-share, 1/3 EMGSG-share, GDF SUEZ currently holding the remaining 1/3), Lesum (100% EMGSG), Reitbrook (50% EMGSG-share, GDF SUEZ currently holding the remaining 50%) and Breitbrunn (19.7% EMGSG-share). These facilities include 4 depleted fields and 2 salt caverns. The respective share of working gas volume concerned is about 1.5 billion cu.m and 80% of storage capacities are already contracted until 2020.
GDF SUEZ now ranks among the top 4 leaders in the German storage market with a 10% market share (2,5% before this acquisition). The group becomes number 1 in Europe in terms of natural gas storage capacities sales (total storage capacity of 12.5 bcm in Europe).