Page 14 - EurOil Week 22

EurOil PIPELINES & TRANSPORT EurOil

InfraStrata signs deal to develop

the UK’s first FLNG

UK LONDON-LISTED InfraStrata has entered a (FID) on the scheme has not yet been reached.
GBP8mn ($9.85mn) deal that could pave the But InfraStrata has said before that the project
way for it to develop the UK’s first floating LNG would take three to four years to implement once
(FLNG) deal. this milestone is cleared.
The company said on May 28 it had agreed a The floating storage and regasification
terms sheet for a cash-plus-shares acquisition of unit (FSRU) is due to be sited off from Bar-
Meridian Holdings, which wants to develop the row-in-Furness, where gas is piped ashore from
project in Cumbria, northern England. The seller fields in Morecambe Bay. The location there-
is Cayman Islands-registered hedge fund West fore is major well suited for connection to the
Face Long Term Opportunities Global Master. national gas grid.
In a statement, InfraStrata said the project, InfraStrata says that project is ideally placed
which would import up to 5-6mn tonnes per and will be vital for ensuring the UK’s future gas
year (tpy) of LNG, would cost around GBP350- supply security.
450mn to realise. But Infrastrata estimates that it “As we move towards a more decarbonised
would earn GBP80-100mn in annual revenues economy, natural gas will be the transitional fuel
over its 25-30 life. of choice, with LNG playing the all-important
“I am very pleased that we have now signed role of balancing natural gas and power markets
this term sheet, leading to the formal sale and by acting as baseload feedstock for power gen-
purchase agreement [SPA] over the course of the eration, on the one hand, and providing peak
next couple of months,” InfraStrata CEO John shaving capabilities on the other,” Wood said.
Wood said in a statement. “The intermittency of power generation from
InfraStrata entered into an exclusivity agree- wind and solar means natural gas will continue
ment with Meridian in July last year on taking to be the fuel of choice for at least the next few
part in the project. A final investment decision decades.” ™
POLICY

Polish watchdog threatens Gazprom with fine

POLAND POLISH regulator UOKiK may fine Russia’s the pending investigation. According to the law,
Gazprom €50mn ($56mn) for failing to cooper- the company is liable to a financial penalty of
Poland’s regulator has ate in a case relating to the financing of the Nord €50mn.”
been seeking to thwart Stream 2 gas pipeline. UOKiK also fined Engie last year for refusing
the project for years. The watchdog brought charges against Gaz- to cooperate with the agency.
prom and its six European partners, France’s Poland is one of the biggest opponents of
Engie, Germany’s Uniper and Wintershall, Aus- Nord Stream 2, which is expected to start pump-
tria’s OMV and Shell, in 2018, for financing Nord ing up to 55bn cubic metres (bcm) per year of gas
Stream 2 without its permission. The agency from Russia to Germany in early 2021. Its gov-
argued that as Nord Stream 2 will affect the Pol- ernment has denounced the project as a threat
ish gas market, the pipeline’s financing required to EU energy security and a tool for Moscow to
its approval under EU law. assert political influence in Europe.
UOKiK said it had requested that Gazprom Gazprom and its European partners had
provide it with documents relating to the case, hoped to form a consortium to build and finance
including the Russian firm’s contracts with its Nord Stream 2, but UOKiK helped blocked this
European partners. Gazprom has not done so, move. Instead, Gazprom has overseen construc-
however. tion on its own while its partners have provided
“Law is clear and applies equally to all of us, loans to cover half of the project’s €9.5bn cost.
however, Gazprom refused to provide docu- Nord Stream 2 faces challenges on all fronts.
ments relevant to our investigation on several The EU has applied its energy legislation to the
occasions,” UOKiK’s president Tomasz Chrostny pipeline, which may mean Gazprom has to par-
said in a statement. “Gazprom cannot operate tially divest it and offer third-party access to its
above the law and, for that reason, I have initi- capacity. Meanwhile, US lawmakers reportedly
ated proceedings against the company to impose plan to introduce additional sanctions on the
a fine for failure to provide information during project.™

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 22 04•June•2020