© Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action

According to the impressive graphs and data on the gas market at smard.de (in German only), average gas consumption in Germany is continuing to decline. All in all, it has dropped by around 21 per cent since the beginning of 2021 – falling from 1,029,056 gigawatt hours (GWh) to 810,412 GWh at the end of 2023. Around 41 per cent of gas in 2023 was consumed by household and commercial customers. Some 59 per cent was used by industry.

Mild temperatures, higher gas prices, energy saving campaign

For domestic and commercial customers alike, gas demand is higher when the weather is colder. In other words, consumption falls in the summer months and rises again during the heating period in winter. In 2023, warmer temperatures meant that consumption levels were lower than in previous years. The German government’s energy saving campaign and the rise in gas prices following the ban on Russian gas imports have also strengthened this trend.

Gas storage facilities already well filled last year before the deadlines

To ensure that Germany can cover the higher gas demand in winter, the country has legal requirements stipulating a fill level of 85 per cent by 1 October and of 95 per cent by 1 November. In 2023, both fill level targets were reached much earlier than this, with tanks 85 per cent full in July 2023 and 100 per cent full by 4 November 2023.

Extensive data on the gas market on the SMARD website

From 2017, the Federal Network Agency has presented gas fill levels and extensive graphs on the gas market on its dedicated website, SMARD. The data is collected as part of monitoring by the Federal Network Agency as stipulated in the Energy Industry Act (EnWG). They also include an annual survey of companies in the energy market. The Federal Network Agency’s findings had previously been published in an energy monitoring report

The new section Energy data compact presents some of the data collected in easy-to read graphs. Brief explanations are also provided to make deciphering the information even easier. The Federal Network Agency constantly adds more and more data to the site. Detailed background information and analyses of the new data can be found in the sections Energy market explained and Energy market news.

All of the information on the SMARD website can also be found in the SMARD user manual.