Page 14 - Euroil Week 28 2020
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Cyprus breaks ground on LNG import terminal
CYPRUS
The project will allow Cyprus to make the switch to gas- red power.
CYPRUS has laid the foundation stone of an LNG import terminal in a ceremony attended by its president, Nicos Anastasiades.
The terminal and a floating regasification storage unit (FSRU), supplied by a Chinese-led consortium, are expected to be up and run- ning by the end of 2022. e project will allow Cyprus to use gas instead of fuel oil and diesel in its power sector. is, in turn, is anticipated to bring down the cost of electricity for consumers and save Cyprus a considerable amount in EU environmental nes.
The project languished for years before nally securing EU nancial backing last year, in the form of a €101mn ($114mn) grant from the European Commission and a €100mn loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). e project’s total budget is €289mn.
Numerous tenders have taken place over the years, but a contest last year led to an award to China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering, a divi- sion of China’s state-owned CNPC, Chinese shipyard Hudong-Zhonghau, Greece’s Metron and Norway’s Wilhelmsen Ship Management.
e ordered FSRU will be tted out in Singa- pore, and the contract also covers the construc- tion of a jetty, mooring facilities, pipelines and infrastructure.
Cypriot authorities have hailed the pro- ject as the island country’s biggest ever energy undertaking.
“It is a project which places Cyprus in the orbit of a new energy era, opening up robust prospects both for economic growth as well as for the broader prosperity of our country and its people,” Anastasiades said at the ceremony.
e completed LNG terminal will be owned by Cyprus’ state gas rm ETYFA, and its gas will be supplied to state power utility EAC, which aims to bring six gas-fired generation units online by 2023. ETYFA’s parent company DEFA has also opened a tender for the supply of LNG from the facility, receiving expressions of interest (EoIs) from 25 international companies, accord- ing to authorities.
Some of the gas will also be taken by inde- pendent power producers (IPPs), with three companies having secured licences in Cyprus to build power plants and sell electricity.
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 28 16•July•2020
