Dutch court orders more cuts in gas production by JURIST, November 18, 2015
The Dutch Council of State [official website, in Dutch] on Wednesday ordered [judgment, in Dutch; press release, in Dutch] more cuts in gas production. The court came to this decision after stronger and more frequent earthquakes occurred in the Netherlands as a result of extraction. The Groningen [BBC backgrounder], the field in question, will be capped at 22 billion cubic meters (bcm) per year from 33 bcm, due to the government’s failure to weight public safety risks after earthquakes caused extensive damage in the Netherlands’ northernmost province. Due to the Groningen supplying 15 percent of Europe’s gas, the Court ruled [Reuters report] “should it turn out to be a relatively cold year, the maximum gas extraction can be raised to 33 billion cubic metres.” The government has twice this year reduced production from its original target of 39.4 bcm. The ruling applies to all production through October 2016.
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