GRTgaz
| Company type | Public limited company (subsidiary) |
|---|---|
| Industry | Natural gas transmission |
| Founded | January 1, 2005 in Bois-Colombes, Île de France, France |
| Headquarters | Bois-Colombes , France |
Area served | France (except southwest), Germany (via subsidiary) |
Key people | Thierry Trouvé (CEO since 2013) |
| Products | Natural gas transmission and related services |
| Owner | ENGIE |
Number of employees | ~30 (in Germany subsidiary) |
| Parent | ENGIE |
GRTgaz is a French company specializing in the operation of natural gas transmission system operator networks, headquartered in Bois-Colombes, Île de France, France. It oversees high-pressure gas pipelines functioning at pressures exceeding .
Status
Operating as a public limited company, GRTgaz is a subsidiary of the industrial conglomerate ENGIE (previously known as Gaz de France). Founded on 1 January 2005 in response to European directives on energy market liberalization, it functions within a regulated framework where tariffs are determined by the French Government and supervised by the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE). Its governance structure includes representatives from the government, independent board members, employee delegates, and ENGIE appointees.
Since April 26, 2013, Thierry Trouvé has held the position of CEO, taking over from Philippe Boucly.
While GRTgaz maintains a natural monopoly over gas transmission in France, its network does not extend throughout the entire country; the southwest region’s transmission infrastructure is managed by Teréga (formerly TIGF), which is linked to the consortium formed by Snam, GIC, and EDF.
In addition, GRTgaz operates within Germany through its subsidiary GRTgaz Deutschland, employing around 30 staff members. This branch partners with Open Grid Europe on the MEGAL pipeline project that delivers natural gas to southern Germany and France.
Missions
The principal aims of GRTgaz include:
- Ensuring the safe and efficient transportation of natural gas to industrial users and public distribution networks,
- Supporting market liberalization by providing non-discriminatory access to its transmission system for all authorized shippers.
Under its public service obligations, GRTgaz guarantees an uninterrupted supply of gas even during extreme cold weather events, defined under French legislation as occurrences statistically expected once every 50 years. The network is designed to satisfy peak demand during such periods, with average national temperatures near -1.5 °C and regional lows potentially reaching -18.1 °C.
Transmission system
From its establishment onward, GRTgaz has been responsible for owning and managing the transmission infrastructure as its primary industrial asset.
Natural gas transmission pipelines managed by GRTgaz
GRTgaz administers an extensive pipeline network covering all regions of France except for the southwest. This infrastructure comprises:
- A main network stretching 8,346 km (as of 2015), featuring large-diameter pipelines ranging from 400 mm to 1,200 mm in diameter operating at pressures between 67.7 and 95 bar,
- A regional network totaling 23,974 km (as of 2015), consisting of smaller pipelines between 80 mm and 400 mm in diameter with operating pressures from 16 to 40 bar, supplying both industrial clients and public distribution grids.
The majority of these pipelines are buried underground in rural zones (approximately 90%), marked by yellow signage and protected by easement zones ranging from 5 to 20 meters to ensure visibility and prevent encroachment.
Investments
GRTgaz has outlined a decade-long investment strategy aimed at:
- Expanding the network to alleviate congestion at entry and exit points while increasing overall capacity,
- Scaling up the regional network infrastructure to accommodate peak consumption during winter months as part of its public service commitments,
- Improving network safety through updated construction standards designed to safeguard people and environmental resources,
- Achieving environmental compliance including ISO 14001 certification for compression stations,
- Ensuring ongoing operational reliability of its facilities.
Between 2013 and 2015, investments exceeded €2 billion, notably funding projects such as "Hauts de France II" and "Arc de Dierrey"—a combined length of 180 km—aimed at connecting the Dunkirk LNG terminal and reinforcing cross-border links with Belgium, Germany, and Spain.
New energy solutions
GRTgaz is promoting the incorporation of renewable gases by facilitating the injection of biomethane into its transmission infrastructure. The initial biomethane connection became operational in Chagny in 2015.
Additionally, the company is dedicating resources to power-to-gas innovations, which transform excess renewable electricity and industrial CO2 into methane through a methanation process. The Jupiter 1000 industrial pilot project, led by GRTgaz, is planned to commence operations in Fos-sur-Mer in 2018.
Within the natural gas vehicle (NGV) domain, GRTgaz was tasked by the French NGV association to create a strategic plan aiming to establish more than 200 public refueling stations by 2020, supporting a target fleet size of 11,000 trucks and 20,000 commercial vehicles.