Natural Gas – A Safe, Eco-Friendly, and Efficient Source of Energy

It is hard to imagine living our everyday lives or our economy without natural gas and electricity.

Natural gas is a combustible gas that, just like crude oil, is produced from underground deposits. Given that it has an origin similar to that of crude oil, natural gas is often found together with this “black gold”.

Depending on the region of production, distinctions are made between different natural gas qualities based on varying chemical compositions. However, all forms of natural gas share one common feature: They all feature methane as their main component. Natural gas often contains relatively large proportions of different hydrocarbons (alkanes) such as ethane, propane, butane, and pentane. Other components can include hydrogen sulphides and carbon dioxide.

Natural gas is subdivided into two large categories based on its methane content:

• High-calorific gas (also called H-gas or high gas) has the highest quality due to its high methane content (between 87% and 99 %). Russian natural gas is H-gas and is characterized by its extraordinarily high calorific value and, thus, its high energy content. Rich in methane (98%), it is considered to be the highest quality gas in the world.

• Low-calorific gas (L-gas or low gas) is natural gas with a lower methane content of between 80 percent and 87 percent. Often, L-gas cannot be shipped directly to the end customer without first being upgraded unless it meets the quality standard (11.1 KWh/m³). Gas quality in Northern Germany, where almost all German natural gas deposits are located, varies strongly; however, L-gas is predominant. The natural gas imported form the Netherlands is also mainly L-gas.

The high quality of Russian natural gas means that it can be used universally across all areas of the economy. The utilization of energy sources such as natural gas involves a variety of innovative technologies and can lead to reduced CO₂ emissions. The German and European energy markets’ ever-growing demand for natural gas further strengthens the role of natural gas as an environmentally friendly source of energy that satisfies the ecological requirements of our time.