Gasunie in talks for capacity in Rotterdam LNG terminal
Dutch gas incumbent Gasunie is in talks with the Port of Rotterdam about investing in and taking capacity at a proposed LNG terminal. A Gasunie spokesman said that LNG has become an attractive proposition because of changing market conditions. “Rising prices for pipeline gas and falling rates for LNG mean that the gap is closing and LNG will soon be viable as baseload gas for the Netherlands,” he said.
“We expect that there will be interest in the Netherlands for supply contracts based on LNG,” he said. “Gasunie and several other companies are in talks with Rotterdam about taking capacity in a terminal.”
Gasunie suspects that the 4.5 Gm3 Zeebrugge LNG terminal, about 150 km southwest in neighbouring Belgium, is the source of some of the gas supplied to Dutch customers by its competitors.
“We have lost some market share to companies importing gas from the UK, Norway and the Zeebrugge terminal,” the spokesman said. This implies that Zeebrugge LNG can be competitive with Dutch gas, traditionally among the cheapest in Europe. Gasunie is also looking at the prospects for a terminal at Maas, near the city of Delfzyl and 30 km from the Netherlands’ giant Groningen gas field. Investment would be less for the Maas project because the Dutch grid is designed to transport large volumes from the nearby field. A Maas terminal could also supply some of the swing gas usually drawn from Groningen.
The Port of Rotterdam confirmed it was in talks with several commercial partners about a terminal, estimated to cost about EUR 300 million. It hopes construction can start in two or three years. A spokesman said that, although the Rotterdam terminal saga has been running for 15 years, the latest revival has more substance than previous episodes because of stronger commercial interest.
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