EMEA News
Gazprom Pulls Out of Estonia LNG Project
A €500 million ($591 million) Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal planned to be built at Sillamäe port, Estonia, has been scrapped, The Baltic Course reports.
The terminal was expected to process Gazprom gas into LNG, handling 2.3 million tonnes of Russian gas per year when built.
But Gazprom has pulled out due to the difficulties placed on European Union-Russia trade by economic sanctions, according to one of the projects founders, Endel Siff.
"The Sillamäe terminal could have become, besides the Ust-Luga port, a Gazprom gas transit project, but now they do not consider it possible to expand in our direction," said Siff.
"A big international business would require international cooperation, but even according to optimistic estimates, restoring technological and financial cooperation with Russia would take at least two years if, for sanctions should be ended today, for example."
Although the Sillamäe terminal is now unlikely to go ahead, according to Siff, a LNG bunkering terminal is likely still to be built either at Sillamäe or at Muuga port, Estonia.
"I consider the LNG topic to have good perspectives, and I believe that for bunkering ships – either with us or in Muuga – one of the terminals will be built," said Sillamäe port representative Andrei Birov.
Vopak LNG has confirmed its intention is still to build a LNG bunkering terminal at Muuga.
"The LNG terminal planned in Muuga port covers the need for bunkering, as well as supplying and storing the natural gas reserves connected to Estonia's energy security," said a spokeswoman for Vopak LNG.
Last week Russian shippers and ports were said to be bracing for a slump in 2015 following western economic sanctions.
