If shippers will commit contractually to the business case related to the infrastructure concerned, Energinet.dk will undertake the construction. The procedure is called Open Season, and the European Regulators’ Group for Electricity and Gas (ERGEG) has drawn up a set of European best practice guidelines for Open Season.
The means to commit the shippers is long-term capacity reservation agreements. If such agreements are consistent with market requirements, the open season could in theory determine the appropriate dimensions of new infrastructure on an open and non-discriminatory basis.
Danish North Sea production of natural gas is expected to decline in the coming years. The Danish gas market is therefore expected to be in need of new sources of supply before the end of 2015. Moreover, a number of market players have requested new Danish transit capacity for Sweden, Poland and Germany.
Great interest for the border point towards Germany
In the Open Season 2009, the market players indicated that a looping of the Ellund-Egtved pipeline and a compressor station were of main importance for the Danish market. Thereby Germany will become an important channel for new sources to Denmark.
Open Season has historically been used in a variety of forms as a way of providing new infrastructure in the USA and a number of European countries. Energinet.dk aims to coordinate the open season with the four present neighbouring transmission system operators (TSOs) in Sweden and Germany as well as the potential new neighbouring TSO in Poland and the Norwegian offshore independent system operator (ISO).