Crude Oil and Gas

Crude Oil

History

Crude oil has been industrially extracted in Germany for more than 150 years. The successful oil well in Wietze near Celle in 1858/59 is generally recognised as being one of the first in the world. Crude oil production in Germany peaked in 1968 with an annual production of around 8 million tonnes. Most of the crude oil reserves are in the North German Basin, primarily in Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony.

Economic importance

With a share of around 36 % of primary energy consumption, crude oil is by far the most important energy source in Germany. In this context, fossil fuels with a share of about 78 % (2023) and 77 % (2024) generally account for a much larger share than renewable forms of energy (see also see also Effects of the Energy Transition and the Structural Change).¹ In 2023, domestic oil production amounted to around 2 % of Germany’s annual consumption and the share thus remained the same compared to the previous year. Germany is one of the world’s largest users of mineral oil, making it almost entirely dependent on importing crude oil and crude oil products. Crude oil imports fell to around 77 million tonnes in 2023. These imports in total were valued at about EUR €45 billion and came from 32 countries, with 59 % of the imported crude oil coming from the USA (14.2 million tonnes), Norway (13.8 million tonnes), Libya (8.8 million tonnes) and Kazakhstan (8.7 million tonnes) – all figures for 2023.² Until mid-2023, Russian crude oil was imported exclusively in the form of linefill (residual quantities in the Druzhba pipeline, about 0.2 million tonnes) and has since no longer played a role in the area of crude oil imports.³ Proven and potential crude oil reserves in Germany were estimated to be almost 23 million tonnes as of 1 January 2024. Germany produced about 1.6 million tonnes of crude oil in 2023.⁴ The country’s share of global oil production amounted to approx. 0.03 % in 2023. The value of crude oil produced in Germany in 2023 is estimated to be EUR 781 million, which represents 0.02 % of GDP. Crude oil accounted for around 5 % of the total value of natural resources produced in Germany in 2023.

In terms of economic significance, crude oil thus ranked third behind lignite and natural gas in the list of fossil energy resources produced in Germany and in seventh place out of all natural resources extracted nationwide. In a 2023 international comparison of crude oil-producing countries, Germany was in 57th place (1970: 26th place). At the end of 2023 (2024), 1,940 (1,644) persons were employed in oil production in Germany (see also Employment and Social Affairs).

Extraction

In 2023, 45 oil fields were in production in Germany. These fields extract oil by means of some 685 production wells in drilling installations (onshore) and production platforms (offshore). In 2023, the oil fields of Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony yielded almost 90 % of the total German production. The remaining quantity was mainly produced in the Federal States of Rhineland-Palatinate and Bavaria, together with very low production levels in Hamburg, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest German crude oil field is the Heide-Mittelplate I field in the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea (Wattenmeer) National Park. It has been developed since 1987 by a drilling and production platform and by oil well facilities on the mainland. This oil field accounted for about half of Germany’s total crude oil production in 2023. Information on exploration and production in the crude oil and natural gas sector is included annually in the report “Crude oil and natural gas in the FederalRepublic of Germany” of the State Office for Mining, Energy and Geology.

Uses

Crude oil is a fossil fuel and mainly used as fuel for vehicles and means of transport and for heating buildings. Over the last few years, oil has accounted for 93 % of energy consumption in the transport sector and has been used in the form of gasoline, diesel and aviation fuel.⁵ In 2023, 28.5 % of residential buildings in Germany were still heated with fuel oil, especially in rural areas without a connection to the gas grid. Crude oil is also used in the chemical industry in particular, for example in the production of plastics and dyes, foams, detergents, medicines, lubricants and cosmetics.

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