Germany welcomes floating LNG terminal Hoegh Gannet

Höegh LNG’s floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal Hoegh Gannet has arrived at Brunsbüttel’s Elbehafen port near Hamburg, Germany to increase German liquid gas import capacity.

RWE, which is responsible for filling the FSRU with LNG, together with companies Uniper and EnBW, said that in the near future, liquid gas from LNG carriers can be regasified and then fed into the German gas network via this Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU).

Frank Schnabel, Brunsbüttel Ports GmbH Managing Director, said: “Ten years of preparatory work now culminate in the implementation of this project. As the owner and operator of Brunsbüttel’s Elbehafen, we are delighted to welcome the FSRU to our port today.”

“With its three ports in Brunsbüttel, the port and industrial site of Brunsbüttel is not only a universal freight hub but also an important energy hub for the entire Federal Republic. With the establishment of a versatile and independent energy import infrastructure for LNG and green energy sources this, Brunsbüttel now has a key role to play in Germany’s future security of supply.”

Markus Krebber, RWE CEO, said: “Floating LNG terminals enable the import of gas and thus strengthen Germany’s security of supply. The strong energy dependence of our country on Russian pipeline gas will end with the deployment of special vessels.“

“The high speed at which the project in Brunsbüttel was jointly driven forward by all involved parties sets standards for the further modernisation of our energy supply. This will also be necessary to ensure that Germany as an industrial location becomes climate-neutral as soon as possible.”

Erik Nyheim, Höegh LNG President & CEO, commented: “Höegh LNG is honoured to be a partner to the Brunsbüttel LNG import terminal project, a project which aligns with our belief that floating LNG infrastructure is the key to solving the current energy crisis. As a partner, we are dedicated to collaborating with RWE and the other partners to successfully commission and operate the floating storage and regasification unit Hoegh Gannet.”

Christian Krämer, Marine Service GmbH Chairman, and Emilio Bruquetas, Reganosa CEO, also expressed pride in being able to contribute to the opening of the terminal.

According to RWE, following the arrival of the FSRU, a several-week phase of commissioning and trial operations will begin, during which the vessel will leave its pier again temporarily.

The trial operations will include a connection to Germany’s latest gas pipeline so that the first gas volumes can be fed into the German gas network from the beginning of February.

The gas volume will increase continuously as further technical components from the new technical infrastructure and warm water supply installed in the past few months are added.

The vessel will initially operate at an existing berth in the Elbehafen of Brunsbüttel Ports GmbH, and from about the end of 2023, it will be moved to a new jetty to the west of the Elbehafen. This new jetty will be built and operated by Brunsbüttel Ports.

The company Reganosa will take over the operation and maintenance of the new land-based infrastructure and the vessel’s owner Höegh LNG will operate it. Marine Service will support the project with technical know-how as a development partner for the terminal design, while the heat required for the regasification process on the FSRU will be provided by Covestro Industriepark Brunsbüttel in the form of warm process water. For this purpose, RWE noted that Covestro laid a new warm water pipeline to the Brunsbüttel Elbehafen port.

According to current plans, RWE said the first LNG cargo will arrive at Brunsbüttel at the end of January 2023 and be unloaded into the FRSU.

The Hoegh Gannet arrival follows the start of Deutsche Energy Terminal GmbH (DET) business operations and the commissioning of floating LNG terminals in Wilhelmshaven and Lubmin.

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