A liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal ship has arrived in Finland, the country’s public gas grid operator announced on Wednesday, as Finland seeks to reduce its reliance on Russian gas.
“The fastest and most efficient solution”
“The floating terminal vessel has proven to be the fastest and most efficient solution to gradually reduce Finland’s dependence on Russian gas and ensure the continuity of gas supplies in Finland,” public operator Gasgrid said in a statement.
Floating LNG terminals allow the importation of natural gas by sea in liquid form.
They consist of a mooring platform and a ship called FSRU (floating storage and regasification unit), where the LNG is delivered, stored and regasified, before sending it to the network.
According to Gasgrid, the new terminal ship, which can carry around 68,000 tons of LNG and is leased for a period of ten years, will be ready to supply Finnish households, industrialists and energy producers from mid-January.
“Gas can come from anywhere in the world where LNG is supplied, but not from Russia,” Gasgrid chief executive Olli Sipilä told AFP.
Gas export possible to other countries
The terminal will also be able to allow deliveries to the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) as well as Poland via the Balticconnector pipeline, which connects Finland and Estonia.
In May, Russia’s Gazprom announced that it had supplied 1.49 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Finland in 2021, around two-thirds of the country’s total consumption.
Natural gas, however, accounts for only about 8% of Finland’s total energy consumption.
In Europe, other countries are adopting these liquefied gas terminals to reduce their dependence on Russian gas.
In December, Germany, which relied on 55% of Russian gas imports, inaugurated its first terminal and another five floating terminals will follow during the year.
Source: BFM TV
