Dutch Gate LNG terminal, a joint venture of Vopak and Gasunie, plans to invest in a further capacity expansion of 1 bcm per year, following a new deal with Germany’s Uniper.
Launched in September 2011, Gate currently has an annual throughput capacity of 12 bcm of gas per year but it has earlier this year revealed plans to add 0.5 bcm per annum of capacity.
Together with the newest investment, Gate would have a total capacity of 13.5 bcm per annum, with the additional regasification capacity to be available from October 01, 2024, according to a statement on Monday.
“Over the ten years of operations we have established a strong relationship with Uniper. We take it as a vote of confidence that Uniper has committed to additional capacity,” Wim Groenendijk, managing director at Gate terminal, said.
Andreas Gemballa, director LNG at Uniper, said the company’s LNG trading activities have grown “significantly from less than 30 cargoes in 2016 to more than 300 to date this year.”
Gemballa said that Uniper has traded 80 percent of these cargoes in the Pacific basin.
“Coming October 2024 Uniper would be the biggest capacity holder at Gate terminal with a capacity of 4 bcm under a long-term contract,” he added.
The expansion of its regas capacity at Gate mirrors the growth of Uniper’s LNG portfolio on the commodity side as well as the expansions of the LNG shipping portfolio, the statement said.
Currently, Uniper has seven LNG vessels under long- and mid-term charters.
For Uniper, Gate is also of “growing importance as a small-scale LNG hub with 3 TWh/year expected to be loaded onto trucks and barges by the end of the year,” the statement said.