Germany’s Uniper and Japan’s MOL ink Wilhelmshaven FSRU deal

German utility Uniper and Japan’s shipping giant Mitsui O.S.K. Lines have reached an agreement to continue and intensify their efforts to implement a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) in Wilhelmshaven, Germany.

The FSRU will have a planned send-out capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per year and a storage capacity of 263,000 cbm.

According to a statement by Uniper on Monday, the facility could be in operation as early as the second half of 2022.

The project benefits from the existing site in Wilhelmshaven where required infrastructure is already in place.

Wilhelmshaven is the only German deep-water port and can be reached without any tidal constraints. In addition, Wilhelmshaven is closely located to the existing pipeline and gas storage infrastructure, the statement notes.

MOL has intention to own, operate and finance the FSRU to be used for the project.

Uniper as project developer said it would continue to work closely with the relevant authorities to receive the permits for the operation of the facility and to gather interest for regasification capacity from additional market participants.

The FSRU will be designed to allow for the loading of small-scale barges to enable the use of LNG as marine fuel. Further, onward transportation of LNG on trucks will be possible.

An import terminal in Germany, especially with the planed large regasification capacity in Wilhelmshaven, would “decisively strengthen the security of gas supply in Germany and increase competition to the benefit of end customers,” the statement said.

This is because it enables large quantities of gas to be procured from the global LNG market and thus serves to diversify gas supplies, which is also being pursued at the political level in Germany and Europe, it said.

“We are glad that we were able to get such an experienced partner as Mitsui O.S.K. Lines on board for the development of Germany’s first LNG terminal. Our partnership with MOL combined with the FSRU technology as well as Wilhelmshaven’s uniqueness in Germany, provide the fastest and most economical way to realise LNG imports directly into Germany. This will also be to the benefit of the end-customers,” said Keith Martin, Chief Commercial Officer of Uniper.

Uniper in LNG shipping deal with Hungary’s MOL

In addition to the agreement in respect of the FSRU Wilhelmshaven, Uniper and Hungary’s MOL entered into a binding transportation agreement.

Under the deal, MOL will provide Uniper with shipping capacity equivalent to a 180,000-cbm LNG carrier, the statement said.

The agreement will start in December 2020. Uniper intends to use the additional shipping capacity to optimize LNG volumes sourced from Freeport, U.S., and to further leverage its expanding LNG trading activities, it said.

Uniper contracted back in 2015 about 0.9 mtpa of US LNG supplies. The supply contract has a duration of 20 years.

LNG World News Staff