Greek Prime Minister attends start of the implementation of Alexandroupolis FSRU

Alexandroupolis, Greece (PortSEurope) May 4, 2022 - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has attended an event to mark the implementation of the Alexandroupolis Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU). The Alexandroupolis Independent Natural Gas System (INGS) project is a modern, cutting edge technology project. It comprises an offshore floating unit for the reception, storage and re-gasification of LNG and a system of a subsea and an onshore gas transmission pipeline. Natural gas is shipped through it into the Greek National Natural Gas System (NNGS) and onwards to the final consumers. The Alexandroupolis INGS has also the capacity to connect with and transmit gas into other gas transmission systems which are planned in the same geographical region such as TAP (Trans Adriatic Pipeline). The liquefied natural gas (LNG) will reach the INGS floating unit by means of LNG carriers, will be transferred into the floating unit through the unit’s loading arms and will be temporary stored in its cryogenic tanks. The Greek government published the following statement by the government regarding the ebvent "The new LNG terminal is an energy gateway for Greece and the Balkans, for southeastern Europe, but also a lighthouse that emits a double signal. Firstly, that with this very important project, but also with the other projects that are being launched in our country, we will very soon be able to substitute natural gas from Russian sources. At the same time, however, that our countries are all ready to take on a key, new role in the new energy map of Europe ", stressed the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during his speech at the beginning of work for the implementation of the floating storage and gasification station LNG off Alexandroupolis. "Today, your presence here, as well as the presence of all the Balkan friends, symbolizes exactly the European dimension of this very important development project. A project that helps the economy of all our countries, a project with a significant geopolitical footprint, a project that - as life and international circumstances brought it and the violent Russian invasion of Ukraine - acquires a special geopolitical significance in this world, the "The Prime Minister noted in the presence of the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, the Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Kiril Petkov, the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, and the Prime Minister of Northern Macedonia, Dimitar Kovachevski. "Moscow's recent blackmail of gas now makes this cooperation not only necessary but - I would say - urgent. Greece is a leader in them. "It has already taken care of its own national energy adequacy and of course it is willing to assist neighboring countries such as Bulgaria", also pointed out Kyriakos Mitsotakis and described all the projects that are in progress and concern the LNG. "This project is added to a series of investments that make Greece an important energy hub: the addition of a new station in Corinth, the possibility of expanding the existing FSRU in the future. All this means that within the next 20 months Greece will be able to receive significant, much increased quantities of liquefied natural gas. "The total gasification capacity will be 58.5 million cubic meters (per day)", said the Prime Minister. "Greek LNG stations will now be able to fully cover, not only the national market, but also to replace a significant part of the supply of Russian gas in the Balkans. And of course in combination with the upgrading of some pipelines and the operation of the interconnectors, of the IGB - so important for Bulgaria and we have worked hard with the friend Prime Minister of Bulgaria, to speed up the completion of this pipeline as much as possible - but of course of the IBS pipeline, Bulgaria - Serbia, of the Greece - Northern Macedonia pipeline ", said Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Charles Michel: This is a geopolitical investment in a critical geopolitical context "I firmly believe that we are seeing a new rise in Europe's energy independence. And here, today, we see clear evidence of this new future, in this city, with this new LNG terminal, which will help diversify our gas supply, strengthen our energy infrastructure, and in our gradual decoupling from Russian fossil fuels, which will make us stronger and safer. "This project contributes significantly to the security of the EU 's energy supply and to our long - term goals on climate change," said European Council President Charles Michel. "This is a geopolitical investment in a critical geopolitical situation. "It reflects what we need to do to an even greater degree that will provide logistics security in Greece, Bulgaria, Northern Macedonia, Serbia and other countries in the region," said Michel. Kiril Petkov: When all the strategic infrastructure projects in the region are connected we can achieve much more "This is a historic day for Greece and Bulgaria and is linked to the pursuit of independence in the energy sector," said Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. "Greece at this very critical moment can also help Bulgaria. When all the strategic infrastructure projects in the region are connected, connections related to gas, energy, pipelines, roads and railways, and given that the Balkans have a population of 65 million, together we can achieve much more. "We can be a machine for European development as a whole," he added. Aleksandar Vučić: We are really grateful and we will be ready to receive relatively large quantities of gas "Some, I think from the Gastrade company, reported that very few had faith in this project. I was one of those skeptics who always said "it will not happen", or "it will not happen at this point in time, it will take another 10 years", I had discussed it with our American friends. "Now that we see that it is ready to start, I can say that we are really grateful and we will be ready to receive relatively large quantities of gas", noted on his part the President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić. Dimitar Kovachevski: What is happening today in Alexandroupolis is a historic event "What is happening today in Alexandroupolis is a historic event. This is long-term energy coverage at a critical time. The diversification of energy resources is very important and the southern corridor contributes to the independence from Russian gas. "In this way we will be able to have more resources, from the USA, from the Middle East, this will mean security in the supply of energy", said among other things the Prime Minister of Northern Macedonia Dimitar Kovachevski. The identity of the project The floating temporary storage and gasification station LNG will anchor 17.6 km southwest of the port of Alexandroupolis, at a distance of 10 km from the coast of Makri, ie within Greek territorial waters. The plant will include tanks with a capacity of about 153,500 cubic meters of LNG and is estimated to be able to supply the National Gas Transmission System with approximately 5.5 billion cubic meters of fuel per year. The unit is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2023. The offshore station of Alexandroupolis will be connected to the National Transmission System through a 28 km long submarine and overland pipeline. The project budget is 363.7 million euros, which includes funding of 166.7 million euros from the resources of the NSRF 2014-2020. A project of strategic importance The floating station will be a new energy portal which upgrades the geopolitical role of Greece in the region and will contribute substantially to the diversification of energy sources and routes for the benefit of our country and the wider Balkans. In this context, the development of the FSRU off Alexandroupolis is a project of strategic importance for Greece, the Balkans and Southeastern Europe, especially given the European Union's effort to become energy independent of Russia. In combination with the rest of the network of strategic infrastructures that have been built or are being built in northern Greece, such as the TAP pipeline, the IGB pipeline and the Greece-Northern Macedonia interconnector pipeline, with the FSRU unit in Alexandroupolis, Greece becomes an important regional energy hub. in EU energy security. At the same time, the capacity of LNG storage in Greece will increase, adding another strategic point beyond the Revythousa unit, which currently has a capacity of 225,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas. The Alexandroupolis unit is the first step in Greece's strategic planning to expand LNG reception and storage capabilities, with a clear export orientation. The development of a second station off Alexandroupolis and a floating unit off Corinth are planned, infrastructures that will have the potential to fully meet the needs of the Greek market and to contribute significantly to the energy mix of many Balkan countries. In full development, these infrastructures will provide Greece with a gasification capacity of 58.5 million cubic meters of gas per day. The Vice President and CEO of Gastrade Costas Sifnaios and the Mayor of Alexandroupolis Ioannis Zampoukis also addressed the event. Present were the Minister of Development and Investment Adonis Georgiadis, the Minister of Environment and Energy Costas Skrekas, the Minister of Shipping and Island Policy Giannis Plakiotakis, the Deputy Minister of Development and Investment Giannis Tsafiris the Minister and the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Macedonia-Thrace Stavros Kalafatis, Secretary General of Energy and Mineral Resources Alexandra Sdoukou, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Head of Economic Diplomacy and President of Enterprise Greece, Giannis Smyrlis & General Secretary General. The entire speech of the Prime Minister Mr. President of the European Council, dear Charles, Mr. President of Serbia, dear Aleksandar, Mr. Prime Minister of Bulgaria, dear Kiril, Mr. Prime Minister of Northern Macedonia, dear Dimitar, dear Ministers, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Regional Governor, dear Mr. Ambassador, dear friends, I welcome you to Alexandroupolis and your presence here today marks the sympathy of the Balkans, but also their European unity. Because, now, our peninsula can have its own place in the strategy of energy transition of our entire continent, so that we can face the situation together with a common course, building fruitful collaborations away from dead-end competitions. And a very important first step in this direction is the Independent Natural Gas System of Alexandroupolis. An energy gateway for Greece and the Balkans, for southeastern Europe, but also a lighthouse that emits a double signal. Firstly, that with this very important project, but also with the other projects that are being launched in our country, we will very soon be able to substitute natural gas from Russian sources. At the same time, however, that our countries are all ready to take on a key, new role in Europe's new energy map. Moscow's recent blackmail of gas now makes this cooperation not only necessary but - I would say - urgent. Greece is a leader in them. It has already taken care of its own national energy adequacy and is of course willing to assist neighboring countries such as Bulgaria. As you know, the new floating LNG tank of Revythousa will increase its capacity by 155,000 cubic meters. And the terminal in Alexandroupolis will add another 154,000 cubic meters. As you have seen, this is an extremely complex project consisting of an offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage and gasification unit and an underwater and onshore pipeline that will direct the gas to the national transmission system via a new station. It is a high-tech construction with a total cost of 360 million euros. It is half funded by the NSRF, but mobilizes in addition to public and private funds from our countries. And at this point I would like to thank all the shareholders of Gastrade, Elmina Kopelouzou, DEPA, DESFA, Bulgartransgaz, GasLog Cyprus Investments and of course Dimitris Kopelouzos, who was the first to envision this project in times when its usefulness and its significance may not have been so obvious. And of course - as I told you - this project comes to add to a series of investments that make Greece an important energy hub: the addition of a new station in Corinth, the possibility of expanding the existing FSRU in the future. All this means that within the next 20 months Greece will be able to receive significant, much increased quantities of liquefied natural gas. The total gasification capacity will be 58.5 million cubic meters (per day). In other words, these Greek LNG stations will now be able to fully cover, not only the national market, but also to replace a significant part of the supply of Russian gas to the Balkans. And of course in combination with the upgrade of some pipelines and the operation of the interconnectors, of the IGB - so important for Bulgaria and we have worked a lot with the friend Prime Minister of Bulgaria, to speed up the completion of this pipeline as much as possible - but of course of the IBS pipeline, Bulgaria - Serbia, of the Greece - Northern Macedonia pipeline. And of course, additional quantities could be shipped through Bulgaria and Romania, why not to the markets of Moldova and Ukraine. Especially if the European Union takes care of the promotion of the projects that we proposed in the REPowerEU initiative, which are precisely aimed at increasing the capacity of these new quantities of natural gas to go to our northern countries, helping their rapid detachment from Russian natural gas. gas. This program, therefore, friends, shows our absolute readiness to meet the challenges of the present, securing new supply routes that bypass such countries, reluctant to cooperate. However, they also show the value of our transnational coexistence, but also of our commitment to the goal of even faster penetration of renewable energy sources. Natural gas - let's not forget - is an extremely important transition fuel for the coming years, but the final perspective remains cheap and clean energy from nature. That is why Greece remains fully committed to the implementation of its European commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030. The promotion of renewable energy sources in our country will make a significant contribution to this effort. . Mr. Mayor, Mr. Regional Governor, obviously the project we are talking about today and whose presence here symbolizes our absolute political commitment to implement it within 20 months, is a project that is extremely important for the region of Alexandroupolis, for the wider area of Evros, not only because it creates new jobs, because it strengthens the local community, because it shields the environment with measures to protect the extremely important habitat in the Evros Delta. However, as we said, it has a nationwide dimension, as long as we think that in combination with our other moves, the possibilities of LNG gasification in Greece can be tripled by the end of 2023. And of course Alexandroupoli, Evros, Thrace, come and justify their own special geopolitical significance. They form an energy portal in a sensitive Greek corner, great both for the Balkans, great both for Europe. In closing, I would like to remind you that the last time the President of the European Council, our good friend Charles, visited us, together with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Parliament, was when we faced the great refugee crisis in Evros in March 2020. Then Europe stood by Greece, in our effort to defend the Greek borders, which were both European and European. Today, your presence here, as well as the presence of all the Balkan friends, symbolizes exactly the European dimension of this very important development project. A project that helps the economy of all our countries, a project with a significant geopolitical footprint, a project that - as life and international circumstances brought it and the violent Russian invasion of Ukraine - acquires a special geopolitical significance in this world, the which is changing at such a rapid pace. So a good start, a good continuation, for the good of our countries, our peoples, but also for the good of the whole of Europe. Thank you very much. Copyright (C) PortSEurope. All Rights Reserved. 2022.

Greek Prime Minister attends start of the implementation of Alexandroupolis FSRU

All news

PSA Antwerp, Combinant sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

Vezzani requests car terminal concession, Porto Marghera

Restructuring plan for Vittoria shipyard approved by Court of Rovigo

AD Port signs East Port Said development agreement

EU fishing fleet sees improved profitability but structural challenges remain

Our Expert Analysis

Latest Free Reads

Top Ports

Greek Prime Minister attends start of the implementation of Alexandroupolis FSRU

Share this news:

All news

PSA Antwerp, Combinant sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)

Vezzani requests car terminal concession, Porto Marghera

Restructuring plan for Vittoria shipyard approved by Court of Rovigo

AD Port signs East Port Said development agreement

EU fishing fleet sees improved profitability but structural challenges remain

Our Expert Analysis

Latest Free Reads

Top Ports