Croatia's
LNG Hrvatska said that a total of 12 applicants have submitted their bids in the
non-binding phase to book capacity at the planned liquefied natural gas (LNG)
terminal on the Adriatic island of Krk.
The bids cover a total capacity
request of 4-6 billion cu m per year, LNG Hrvatska said in a statement, adding
that the applicants will be informed about the next steps in the
process.
The bidding deadline expired on May 31. The open season
procedure got underway on December 8.
In December, LNG Hrvatska -
established for the purpose of building and operating the infrastructure
necessary for receiving, storing and regasifying LNG, told SeeNews that the
capacity of the terminal will be 4-6 billion cu m annually and that it was
expecting the biggest interest to come from regional companies engaged in the
production of LNG and in gas trade.
In the first phase of the two-stage
open season procedure, potential customers were invited to submitnon-binding
bids for storage capacity. Based on the received offers and total available
capacity, LNG Hrvatska will come up with proposals for the capacity allocation.
If satisfied with the capacity allocated, potential customers can proceed to the
second step of the open season procedure and submit a binding
offer.
After the binding offer is accepted, the respective customer will
be able to sign a long term contract with LNG Hrvatska in order to finally book
the previously allocated capacity.
A deadline for the filing of bids for
the preparation of the design and permitting documentation for the construction
of the LNG terminal expired on May 21 with no official word so far on the
outcome from the tendering process.
In May, local media quoted LNG
Hrvatska director Mladen Antunovic as saying the construction of the LNG
terminal will start in the middle of 2016.
LNG Hrvatska,which is
currently in the process of obtaining a location permit for the planned
terminal, has said that it expects the project would benefit from the latest
developments regarding the South Stream gas pipeline as they shift focus in the
region on gas supplies via Krk.
Besides the capacity booking procedure,
LNG Hrvatska intends to initiate a call for equity in the first half of 2015.
The final investment decision on the project is expected in the middle of 2016
with the commissioning of the LNG terminal seen in the middle of
2019.
The LNG terminal, which will be able to receive the largest LNG
carriers of up to 265,000 cu m, is planned to comprise two storage tanks with a
capacity of 180,000 cu m each.
The planned LNG terminal on Krk -
alongside the award of off- and on-shore oil and gas permits and participation
in the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline project, is part of efforts to develop Croatia
into a regional energy hub.