Natural gas production was interrupted in the Dutch region of Groningen

It was announced that natural gas production has been ended from fields in the Groningen region, which in the past caused earthquakes and damage to settlements in the Netherlands.

State Minister for Mining Hans Vijlbrief announced in his statement to X that production at the Groningen natural gas fields was stopped as of October 1.

“As of Sunday, gas production in Groningen fell to zero after 60 years,” said Vijlbrief. He noted that fields where production has stopped will be permanently closed next year.

Minister Vijlbrief said: “I have signed the decision guaranteeing the permanent closure of the sites in Groningen. “The fields will be permanently closed on October 1, 2024,” he shared.

In the statement published on the government website, it was indicated that the option of reopening the fields was evaluated exceptionally in the event that the winter months were extremely cold this year, and it was emphasized that the fields would be closed completely irreversibly on October 1, 2024. next year.

In the news published by public broadcaster NOS, it is stated that gas extraction activities in 26 fields were reduced to five in recent months and production was suspended at 06:00 local time this morning.

GAS PRODUCTION WAS DISCUSSED DUE TO THE EARTHQUAKE

The fact that gas production in Groningen, located in the north of the Netherlands, caused an earthquake in recent years caused controversy in the country and production was temporarily stopped.

During the extraction of reserves in Groningen, one of the most important natural gas fields in Europe, cracks appeared in the buildings of the surrounding settlements.

In April 2023, the Dutch government announced that a budget of €22 billion would be allocated over 30 years for the repair of earthquake-damaged buildings in surrounding settlements due to the production of natural gas in Groningen and for the development of the region. (AA)