To replace the Russian gas supplies that ceased in 2022, several temporary import terminals for liquefied natural gas (LNG) have been built on the German coast. FSRUs (Floating Storage and Regasification Units) are used to regasify liquefied natural gas from LNG carriers and then inject the gas into the existing gas grid.

At the Brunsbüttel site, the FSRU Hoegh Gannet will inject regasified LNG into the gas distribution grid of Schleswig-Holstein Netz AG from March 2023. To be able to use as much of the LNG as possible in Schleswig-Holstein, four distribution grids that had previously been operated separately were merged into one joint grid. A wide variety of gas qualities is now available in the joint system. In addition to LNG and natural gas from various sources, hydrogen generated from wind power and unconditioned biogas are also injected into the grid.

To enable correct billing in accordance with German technical rules, SmartSim was implemented as a gas quality tracking system. This additionally eliminates the need to admix liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to the biogas. During a field test with mobile gas chromatographs, a very good match between the values calculated with SmartSim and the measured values could be confirmed.

The use of SmartSim in the grid was already prepared before the year 2022. However, due to the foreseeable LNG injection in Brunsbüttel, the implementation then had to take place with a very ambitious schedule. Thanks to the good cooperation between Schleswig-Holstein Netz AG, E.ON Grid Solutions GmbH and SmartSim GmbH, the successful start of operation was achieved in good time before the LNG injection. The accelerated approval procedure with the local authorities and the national metrology institute (PTB) also contributed to the successful completion of the project.