Croatia's Krk LNG Terminal Send-Out Capacity May Be Raised

Croatian state-owned company LNG Hrvatska said it could consider raising the send-out capacity of the planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on the Adriatic island of Krk if interest from shippers remains as high as was expressed in the non-binding capacity booking round.Last week, LNG Hrvatska launched the binding bid phase to book capacity at the Krk LNG terminal. The deadline for filing bids is September 30.

The open season procedure got underway on December 8. The deadline in the first, non-binding phase, expired in May, attracting a total of 12 bids.

During the storage duration period, available regasification and send out rate of natural gas is ranging from 200,000 cu m/h to 800,000 cu m/h, a document posted on the website of LNG Hrvatska showed.

The expressed non-binding interest was higher than the planned technical capacity and if it remains as high after the bindings bids are submitted, LNG Hrvatska said it could consider introducing additional evaporation units that will enable a higher send out rate than the planned nominal rate.

LNG Hrvatska also said in the document that after receiving the non-binding offers it has decided to proceed with plans to build an on-shore LNG terminal instead of a floating facility.

Taking into account the relevant Croatian regulations and the planned commissioning year for the LNG terminal, gas flows could start from October 1, 2019, the document showed.

In December, LNG Hrvatska - established for the purpose of building and operating the infrastructure necessary for receiving, storing and regasifying LNG, told SeeNews that the capacity of the terminal will be 4-6 billion cu m annually and that it was expecting the biggest interest to come from regional companies engaged in the production of LNG and in gas trade.

In May, local media quoted LNG Hrvatska director Mladen Antunovic as saying the construction of the LNG terminal will start in the middle of 2016.

LNG Hrvatska, which in July issued an equity call for investors interested in helping develop the project, has said that it expects the project would benefit from the latest developments regarding the South Stream gas pipeline as they shift focus in the region on gas supplies via Krk.

The final investment decision on the project is expected in the middle of 2016 with the commissioning of the LNG terminal seen in the middle of 2019.

The LNG terminal, which will be able to receive the largest LNG carriers of up to 265,000 cu m, is planned to comprise two storage tanks with a capacity of 180,000 cu m each.

The planned LNG terminal on Krk - alongside the award of off- and on-shore oil and gas permits and participation in the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline project, is part of efforts to develop Croatia into a regional energy hub.

Source: SeeNews