Germany looks for new partners to replace Russian energy imports DUBAI: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected to sign contracts for liquefied natural gas during his visit to the UAE on Sunday, his deputy chancellor said, as Germany looks for new partners to replace Russian energy imports. “The gas offering is slowly broadening. The government is permanently in talks with many countries,” Economy Minister Robert Habeck said, pointing to his own trip to Qatar and the UAE in March. In May, sources told Reuters that LNG talks between Germany and Qatar were fraught with differences over key conditions, including the duration of any contract. German is acquiring LNG terminals as part of its efforts to diversify away from Russian gas. Habeck was speaking in Lubmin in northern Germany, where the government hopes a state-leased floating storage and regasification unit can be operational at the end of 2023 at the earliest. The government is permanently in talks with many countries. Robert Habeck, economy minister “We must show that in times like these, we can plan, authorize and build faster than is usually the case in Germany,” Habeck said of the construction drive, adding that LNG projects in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbuettel were examples of this. “There is a good, realistic chance ... that the two FSRU vessels there will be able to feed into the German gas network from the turn of the year,” he said. EWEC water project The Emirates Water and Electricity Co. has invited expressions of interest on the development of Abu Dhabi Islands Reverse Osmosis Independent Water Project. The project consists of two stand-alone greenfield reverse osmosis seawater desalination plants to be located on Saadiyat Island and Hudayriat Island, reported Zawya. Through sustainable and low carbon methods, both plants will produce 100 million imperial gallons per day — covering the water demand of 180,000 households in Abu Dhabi. “Reverse osmosis is a vital low-carbon intensive seawater desalination technology that enables EWEC to strategically change its water and power generation portfolio, and ultimately contribute to the decarbonization of the energy sector,” stated EWEC CEO Othman Al-Ali. ADNOC’s transmission system The Abu Dhabi National Oil Co.’s project — a $3.6 billion high-voltage, direct current subsea transmission system — is on the verge of financial close. A consortium led by South Korean Kepco — including Japan’s Kyushu Electric Power Co. International and Électricité de France — was awarded the public-private partnership contract last December. The transmission system will decrease ADNOC offshore’s carbon footprint by 30 percent through using sustainable power sources in Abu Dhabi’s onshore power network, according to MEED. Construction on the project is expected to begin soon.