Spanish LNG imports rose 39 percent in September when compared to the same month last year, according to data by the country’s LNG terminal operator, Enagas.
LNG imports totaled about 24.5 TWh in September. Including pipeline imports from Algeria and France, gas imports reached about 35.2 TWh last month, down from some 36 TWh in September last year, Enagas said in its monthly report.
Gas demand rose on the back of higher demand for power generation. Demand for power generation rose 54.1 percent to 15.7 TWh in September while conventional demand dropped 38 percent to 12.4 TWh, the LNG terminal operator said.
Enagas 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.
The firm is working to launch its El Musel LNG facility in Gijon with the capacity to unload and load 100 carriers per year.
Spanish LNG regasification terminals unloaded 27 cargoes last month, eight shipments more compared to the same month last year, according to Enagas.
US remains the biggest supplier of LNG to Spain with some 6 TWh or about 17 percent of the total imports in September. US LNG supplies rose slightly from 5.9 TWh last year.
Volumes from Nigeria and Russia each reached some 5.3 TWh. Nigeria volumes increased from 2.8 TWh in September last year while Russia did not supply any LNG cargoes to Spain in September last year, Enagas data shows.
Other LNG sources in September include Angola, Trinidad an Tobago, Cameroon, Egypt, Qatar, and Indonesia, Enagas said.
Spanish LNG terminals loaded about 1 TWh in September, down 45 percent when compared to the last year, while the number of truck loads dropped 37.6 percent to 732, the data shows.