Fluxys LNG denies that Greenpeace was given permission to enter the Zeebrugge natural gas terminal. Ahead of the court case against the activists on 7 June, no decision has yet been taken on the civil action.
Greenpeace’ s action against the Fluxys LNG terminal in Zeebrugge on Saturday 29 April will be followed up on 7 June before the correctional court in Bruges. Then 14 of 22 climbers and canoeists will have to answer for entering the port with aggravating circumstances.
According to the Belga news agency, entering the facilities was done with the permission of the terminal operator, but this is now firmly refuted by spokesman Thierry Vervenne: “On Tuesday 25 April, we met Greenpeace at our offices in Brussels. That happened on our initiative. But nothing was said about the planned action.”
Measuring damage
On Saturday 29 April, five rubber boats arrived at the eastern jetty where gas tankers dock. From the boats, activists climbed up the terminal to the very top of the installations. There at a height of tens of metres, they unfurled a large banner. Meanwhile, canoeists with small banners kept bobbing on the water.
The marine police made 14 judicial arrests. “There has also been no decision yet on our possible intervention in the ongoing proceedings before the correctional court. Determinations of damages are still ongoing,” Vervenne said.
Supply security
Greenpeace’s action was against the use of natural gas. “We demand that Fluxys stops new gas projects,” Mathieu Soete, energy expert at Greenpeace Belgium, said in a press release. “By 2035, we have to get rid of gas for good. The US and European gas industry are presenting liquefied gas imports as the main response to the closure of Russian pipelines due to the war in Ukraine. Under pressure from companies like Fluxys, countless new gas projects and terminals are being built here and in the US. This threatens entire communities and has disastrous environmental and climate consequences. “
We fully understand the climate concerns of the demonstrators, but find Greenpeace’s actions and messaging unfortunate
“As a company, Fluxys is 100% committed to accelerating the energy transition,” stressed Vervenne. “We fully understand the climate concerns of the demonstrators, but find Greenpeace’s actions and coverage unfortunate. Fluxys fully supports the climate objectives of the Paris Agreement and the European Green Deal. With all our teams, we are fully engaged in building a 100% carbon-neutral energy system by 2050, starting from our existing infrastructure.”
“We do wish to emphasise the importance of the safety of our employees, our facilities and other stakeholders, and of operational activities, including in the context of security of supply. Fluxys is facilitator of an essential service, we put our infrastructure at the service of the security of supply of Belgium and Europe 24/7,” Vervenne concluded.
