Commercial operations at France’s fourth LNG import terminal in the port of Dunkirk will begin in September, with the first cargo for commissioning purposes expected on July 8.
The first commissioning cargo of about 135,000 cbm of LNG will be brought by France’s energy giant EDF, who owns a 65 percent stake in Dunkirk LNG (Dunkerque LNG). A second ship will follow in August to complete testing of the import facility, according to Dunkirk LNG.
To remind, LNG World News reported last week that the first commissioning cargo was expected between 04th and 08th July.
The first ship will “ call at the LNG terminal wharf for seven days (rather than the normal 24 hours). As the equipment will still be at ambient temperature, the LNG (at -160°) will need to be unloaded much more slowly than normal so the process gradually enters its ‘cool state’ ,” Christophe Liaud, Commercial Director of Dunkerque LNG said in a statement.
“ Additionally, the LNG load must come from a liquefaction plant and have a sufficiently low pressure. The methane tanker must also be less than 15 years old to ensure it has the specific equipment required for the start-up of the terminal. Last but not least, the client must accept the risk of cancelling the call if the terminal is not in fact ready on the planned date. ”
“ It’s a lot of limitations ,” said Liaud, adding that EDF has managed to find an LNG supplier who can “ meet these limitations while guaranteeing a competitive price “.
The Dunkirk LNG terminal will have an annual regasification capacity of 13 billion cbm of gas, enough to cover about 20% of France and Belgium’s annual gas consumption.
EDF booked 8 bcm of the LNG terminal’s capacity, while Total reserved 2 bcm of gas. The remaining gas quantities will be sold on the market after the LNG terminal has been commissioned.
Besides EDF, Fluxys of Belgium has a 25% share in the LNG terminal. French gas and oil giant Total owns the remaining 10 percent.
LNG World News Staff