Dutch court orders cut to Groningen production

Giant Dutch swing gas field output to be halved, creating room for more peak winter deliveries from outside the European Union

Production from Groningen, the largest gasfield ever found in western Europe, will be temporarily limited to 27bn cm/year - half the 53.9bn cm it produced in 2013 - according to a ruling by the highest court in the Netherlands. It represents a further setback to the field’s operator and 60% owner, NAM, which is owned half each by Anglo-Dutch Shell and US ExxonMobil. The other 40% is owned by the government. Less Dutch gas may lead to more non-EU imports such as LNG and Russian gas and thus higher prices over the winter, when the field is operated flexibly to meet heating needs in northwest Europe. The adminstrative division of the Council of State ruled 18 November that its new 27bn cm cap m