Shell is the launching customer of new, dedicated liquefied natural gas (LNG) for transport infrastructure, announced on Wednesday by the Gas Access To Europe (Gate) terminal. The Gate terminal is a joint venture of Gasunie, Vopak and OMV at the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Shell has committed to buy capacity from the Gate terminal, which has enabled this investment in the terminal expansion.
The new LNG for transport infrastructure, called a 'break bulk' terminal, includes the construction of a new jetty. The new jetty will increase availability of LNG as a transport fuel for vessels in north-west Europe. Maarten Wetselaar, Shell's Executive Vice President, Integrated Gas, said: "We are pleased to have reached this agreement. The collaboration between Gasunie, Vopak, the port of Rotterdam, and Shell will provide security of supply of LNG for marine and road transport customers in north-west Europe, through dedicated and scalable infrastructure. LNG is a viable option for fuelling cleaner and more sustainable transport. We believe LNG will form a bigger part of the transport fuel mix in the future, and this project demonstrates our confidence in LNG as a fuel option."
Rotterdam is a key location for global shipping, port and bunkering operations, giving the Gate terminal an advantaged position to serve customers in the marine and road sector. The new, dedicated break bulk terminal is expected to be operational in Q4 2016. It will be positioned alongside the central Gate terminal, where LNG currently arrives via large carriers from around the world. When operational, the new break bulk terminal will receive gas in its liquid form from the central terminal by pipeline, and break it down into smaller quantities for distribution. Previously, all the LNG arriving in to the port was re-gasified for the power and industrial sector, and also re-exported. To serve marine customers in the port of Rotterdam, Shell intends to charter a specialised LNG bunker vessel to facilitate ship to ship transfer operations, and also deliver LNG to secondary distribution terminals outside the port area.-PR
Comments
Comments are closed.