Spanish LNG terminal operator Enagas reported an 81 percent increase in its regasification volumes to 77.3 TWh in the first quarter of this year.
The company operates a large network of gas pipelines and has four LNG import plants in Barcelona, Huelva, Cartagena and Gijon. It also owns 50 percent of the BBG regasification plant in Bilbao and 72.5 percent of the Sagunto plant.
“In an exceptional context caused by the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and also following the closure of the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline, the Spanish gas system is operating at 100 percent technical and commercial availability,” Enagas said in its quarterly report.
The firm said its measures aimed at guaranteeing supply have allowed ship unloading to increase in the first quarter in Spain by 69 percent compared to the same period in 2021, to 79.1 TWh.
In the first quarter of the year, the supply of LNG from nine different countries of origin accounted for 70 percent of the country’s gas supply.
The United States was the main supplier of natural gas to Spain, accounting for 37 percent of the total, followed by Algeria with 26 percent and Nigeria with 14 percent.
In addition, vessel loading reached 3.9 TWh, 169 percent more than for the first quarter of 2021.
Net profit down
Net profit dropped to 69.3 million euros ($73.5 million) in the first quarter, compared to 92.9 million euros in the same period last year, according to Enagas.
“This result is in line with expectations for the quarter and with the objectives for 2022,” it said.
The firm also said it expects net profit of around 430 million euros for the entire year, including capital gains from the asset rotation process initiated by the company such as the terminal in Chile.
Washington-based energy investor EIG and Belgium’s LNG terminal operator Fluxys have recently joined forces to buy an 80 percent equity stake in GNL Quintero, the largest regasification terminal in Chile.
The two firms are buying the controlling stake from Enagas Chile, which currently owns a 45.4 percent stake in the facility, and affiliates of Omers Infrastructure which hold a 34.6 percent stake.