Greece’s first FSRU arrives in Alexandroupolis - LNG PRIME

December 17, 2023

Greece’s first floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) has arrived in Alexandroupolis, where it will soon start serving Gastrade’s LNG import project.

According to its AIS data, the 153,600-cbm Alexandroupolis was on Sunday anchored offshore the Greek port of Alexandroupolis.

Greece’s Gastrade previously said that the FSRU would arrive in the port on December 17 from Singapore.

Last month, the vessel left Seatrium’s yard in Singapore following the completion of the conversion work at the yard.

Gastrade’s shareholder and Greek LNG shipping firm GasLog told Keppel Offshore & Marine, now Seatrium, in February last year to proceed with the conversion of the 2010-built, GasLog Chelsea, to an FSRU.

Greek gas grid eyes 1-billion euro hydrogen pipeline - REUTERS

July 13, 20236:37 PM GMT+3

ATHENS, July 13 (Reuters) - Greek gas grid operator DESFA wants to build a 1 billion euro ($1.12 billion) hydrogen pipeline that will connect Greece to Bulgaria, as part of a future European southeastern corridor, it said on Thursday.

The scheme, jointly proposed with Bulgaria, has passed an initial technical assessment by the European Commission, making it eligible for inclusion in a European list of projects of common interest, DESFA said in a presentation released on Thursday.

This puts "Greece, Spain and Italy at the same level with respect to the potential for the future role that these Mediterranean countries will play in providing infrastructure for hydrogen," DESFA Chief Executive Maria Rita Galli told a news conference.

INTERVIEW: Greece-Bulgaria gas link to run market tests for capacity expansion in H2 - SEE NEWS

Apr 28, 2023 15:31 EEST
Antonia Kokalova-Gray

SOFIA April 28 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the operator of the Greece-Bulgaria natural gas interconnector (IGB), is planning to launch market tests in the second half of 2023 to gauge potential demand ahead of a planned capacity expansion, chief executive Teodora Georgieva told SeeNews.

ICGB has begun assessing the pipeline's infrastructure readiness to carry hydrogen as well, Georgieva told SeeNews in an interview earlier this month at the Budapest LNG Summit.

In case of sufficient market demand, the expansion of the IGB's capacity to 5 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year from the current 3 bcm/year will also help ensure the flow of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from terminals in Greece - the operational facility at Revithoussa and planned terminals like the one in Alexandroupolis. ICGB is already working on this opportunity with Greek transmission system operator DESFA, according to the chief executive. Building a new compressor station on the Greek side is one of the projects that will advance capacity expansion.

Greece can nearly quadruple gas export capacity by 2025 - gas grid operator - REUTERS

November 30, 2022 — 07:30 am EST
Angeliki Koutantou

ATHENS, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Greece is becoming a European gas corridor and can nearly quadruple its gas export capacity to neighbouring countries in the coming years thanks to new infrastructure under development, Maria Rita Galli, the chief executive of the country's gas grid operator DESFA said on Wednesday.

In the wake of the war in Ukraine, Greece has this year more than halved its imports of Russian gas, instead ramping up deliveries of liquefied natural gas (LNG), mainly from the United States and Egypt, to its sole LNG facility at Revithoussa near Athens.

The terminal, which the government has called "indispensible", has also helped export gas to neigbouring nations including Bulgaria, which was cut off from Russian supplies earlier this year after refusing to pay in roubles.

Bulgaria to double reserve capacity at new Greek LNG terminal - REUTERS

SOFIA, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Bulgaria has reached an agreement in principle to double its reserved capacity at a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility to be built off the northern Greek port of Alexandroupolis, the interim energy minister said on Monday.

Rossen Hristov told reporters that raising the reserved capacity to 1 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas per year at the LNG terminal, expected to become operational at the end of 2023, will help the Balkan country ensure diversified and stable gas supplies.

The interim government, which has come under fire at home for seeking to renew gas supplies from Russia’s Gazprom , has said it plans to open tenders for mid to long-term gas deliveries and wanted to import more LNG gas through Greece.

The Alexandroupolis terminal is due to be built by a consortium of Greece’s Copelouzos family, Greek gas companies DEPA and DESFA, Bulgaria’s Bulgartransgaz and Cyprus’s Gaslog.

World LNG Summit & Awards to be hosted in Greece - LNG INDUSTRY

Thursday, 28 July 2022 08:56

The 22nd World LNG Summit & Awards will be held in Athens, Greece, for the first time on 29 November - 02 December 2022. The Summit is endorsed by the Ministry of Environment & Energy, Greece, and hosted by DESFA.

The 22nd World LNG Summit & Awards will bring together global LNG leaders from across the value chain to define the critical role of LNG and gas in both energy security and the ongoing drive for decarbonisation. As LNG enters a new frontier, this will be one of the most important conversations yet for the future of the global LNG and gas industry.

Half of Bulgaria-Greece gas link capacity already reserved - SEE NEWS

Jan 26, 2022 17:43 EEST
Aleksia Petrova

SOFIA (Bulgaria), January 26 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the company developing the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria project, said that a total of 1.57 bcm, half of the gas link's capacity, has already been reserved ahead of its planned launch of commercial operations in July.

"Four out of the five shippers that have booked capacity are entirely new to the Bulgarian market and that leads us to believe the international and market interest in the project will only be growing after its commercial launch," ICGB said in a statement quoting Teodora Georgieva, its executive officer on the Bulgarian side.

ICGB also said that it has signed a contract with Germany-based PRISMA European Capacity Platform, Europe’s leading gas capacity trading platform, marking a major milestone in the preparations for the pipeline’s launch of commercial operation.

DESFA lands LNG project in Kuwait - KATHIMERINI

11 December 2020 : 22:21
Chryssa Liaggou

Greece’s gas grid operator is making a dynamic entry into the international scene after landing a significant project in Kuwait.

The Hellenic Gas Transmission System Operator (DESFA) has undertaken the operation and maintenance of a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal under construction in the Gulf country, which is expected to start operating in 2021.

DESFA outbid six other suitors short-listed by KIPIC, a subsidiary of the state oil company of Kuwait, to secure the management and maintenance of the LNG station being constructed at al-Zour, some 90 kilometers from the country’s capital city.

The Greek company announced that the contract it has secured with KIPIC will last for a minimum of five years, and DESFA earned it after the completion of the second and final stage of the tender.

It added that a key role in its successful bid belonged to the high specialization and expertise of DESFA’s stakeholders, Snam and Enagas, and to the experience that the Greek gas grid operator has gained from managing the country’s transmission system and the LNG terminal on the island of Revythousa.

Qatargas Ships 1st Q-Flex LNG Cargo to Greek Revithoussa Terminal - WORLD MARITIME NEWS

Qatargas Ships 1st Q-Flex LNG Cargo to Greek Revithoussa

July 23, 2019

Doha-based liquefied natural gas company Qatargas has delivered the first LNG cargo on a Q-Flex vessel to Greece’s Revithoussa LNG Terminal.

This is the first time that a Q-Flex LNG vessel has called at the terminal ever since it underwent an expansion drive late last year, Qatargas said.

The cargo, which was loaded at the Ras Laffan Terminal in Qatar on July 3, 2019, arrived at the Revithoussa Terminal on board the 216,224 cbm Al Gharrafa on July 20, 2019.

The Q-Flex cargo is part of a multi-port delivery executed by Qatargas. It is being undertaken in cooperation with the European utility Engie, which will see the second cargo being delivered at the Cartagena LNG terminal in Spain later this month.

“This significant delivery is aligned with Qatargas’ strategy to continue growing the ever increasing number of terminals that our Q-Flex and Q-Max vessels can deliver into,” Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chief Executive Officer of Qatargas, commented.

Ambassador Pyatt’s Remarks at the 2nd Energy Union Leaders Academy Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation - US EMBASSY ATHENS GREECE

Aikaterini Laskaridis Foundation

Panorama City Hall

April 12, 2019, 16:00

Let me start this short address by thanking the Greek Energy Forum and the American College of Thessaloniki for organizing this “Energy Union Future Leaders” Academy, bringing together young leaders from 18 countries to discuss the opportunities and challenges in the vitally important energy sector. I can’t think of a better location for this event than Thessaloniki, exactly at the moment that northern Greece is reestablishing its role as the commercial and energy hub of the Balkans. I’m also especially glad that this is happening on the campus of Anatolia College, which is really one of the hidden gems of the U.S. legacy of support in northern Greece, and I’m delighted to be on the campus on such a beautiful day.

Two of the Academy’s main objectives are the promotion of energy diversification and energy security, which happen to mirror priorities of the United States government. And I think the energy security of our European partners and allies has been a longstanding priority for the United States, but it’s only over the past few years, that Greece has become a real leader in these efforts. I know that the Greek Minister of Energy, Minister Stathakis, heard this message very clearly from our Secretary of State and our Secretary of Energy when he was in Houston last month, and Secretary Pompeo repeated a similar message when he recently participated in the first 3+1 summit meeting in Jerusalem with Prime Ministers Netanyahu, Anastasiadis, and Tsipras.

The transfer of the 66% of DESFA’ shares to SENFLUGA Energy Infrastructure Holdings S.A. is completed - HRADF

Athens, 20/12/2018

PRESS RELEASE

The successful completion of another important milestone of the Hellenic Republic's program for the development of assets by HRADF marks the transfer of 66% stake (31% owned by HRADF and 35% owned by HELPE) to SENFLUGA Energy Infrastructure Holdings S.A. for a total amount of €535 million.

The business substance of DESFA’s new shareholder, comprising of the European energy companies Snam S.p.A., Enagás Internacional S.L.U. και Fluxys S.A., certifies the attractiveness of the Greek market, highlights the investment prospects of Greece and makes the country as a natural gas hub in Europe.

With respect to the above, the Executive Chairman of HRADF, Mr. Aris Xenofos, stated: “An extremely successful tender process, which attracted considerable investment interest, was completed today. The new era that starts for DESFA strengths also the role and the position of our country as an energy hub for the EU but and the wider geographical region. We have confidence in DESFA's new shareholders and the development plans they will deliver, transferring their international experience and know-how to the company. We are here support them as the case may be”.

Energy Min Stathakis inaugurates LNG expansion project in Revithousa - ANA-MPA

22 Νοεμβρίου 2018, 20:21:26

Greece on Thursday officially inaugurated the third tank of LNG in Revithousa. Environment and Energy Minister George Stathakis, addressing the inauguration ceremony said the project was creating new data in the natural gas market.

Presenting the government’s policy on natural gas, Stathakis said it was focusing on preserving networks under state control and their expansion in 18 regional cities, strengthening interconnections in the Balkans with projects such as the IGB pipeline and an intention to interconnect with FYROM, transforming Greece into a natural gas hub. He added that DESFA is playing a strategic role in this policy.

The Revithousa LNG terminal is one of the 13 operating in Europe and the only one in the Balkans. With the addition of the third tank the terminal’s capacity rises from 130,000 to 225,000 cubic meters, or 1,000-1,400 cubic meters per hour. The project also included an upgrading of port installations allowing biggest ships to dock (260,000 dwt from 180,000 currently). The project’s budget totalled 143 million euros, using community funds (35 pct), loans worth 80 million euros from the European Investment Bank and DESFA’s own capital.

Upgraded LNG terminal set for launch amid US interest - ENERGY PRESS

12 SEPT 2018

A third storage tank added to an LNG terminal at Revythoussa, an islet close to Athens, is set for its commercial launch between late October and early November, slightly behind schedule.

The new tank, which promises to increase the facility’s overall capacity to 225,000 cubic meters, almost double its previous size, is currently undergoing test runs.

The facility’s capacity upgrade represents a pivotal development for the LNG terminal, a key asset belonging to DESFA, the natural gas grid operator, whose 66 percent is being privatized. A consortium comprised of Italy’s Snam, Spain’s Enagás Internacional and Belgium’s Fluxys has emerged as the winning bidder with a 535 million-euro offer.

DESFA is already engaged in talks with Greek and foreign firms interested in utilizing the upgraded facility and reserving capacities. They include two US firms, Cheniere and Tellurian, amid initiatives being taken for American gas imports into Greece. Cheniere and Tellurian have enquired about usage fees, capacities, technical details and port capabilities.

All firms interested in utilizing the upgraded LNG terminal at Revythoussa have made clear they are eyeing both the Greek market and the wider region to the north.

Snam-led consortium in 535 mln euro deal for stake in Greece's gas grid operator DESFA- INDIA TIMES / REUTERS

July 20, 2018, 16:39 IST

ATHENS: A consortium led by Italy's Snam will take a majority stake in Greek gas grid operator DESFA under a 535 million euro ($623 million) deal signed on Friday, the country's HRADF privatisation agency said.

A consortium of Snam, Spain's Enagas Internacional and Belgium's Fluxys will buy a 66 percent stake from the government and top Greek oil refiner Hellenic Petroleum .

US backing Greece's energy agenda, Ambassador Pyatt says - KATHIMERINI

04.MAY.2018 : 13:18

The US will be a reliable supplier and ally for Greece as it deregulates its energy market, US Ambassador in Athens Geoffrey Pyatt said on Thursday, adding that Greece is a very important partner in Washington's energy agenda.

Speaking at an energy conference, the US ambassador stressed that energy security makes countries less vulnerable to external pressure. He accused Russia of using the “weapon” of the interrupting energy supply 55 times in the past, as a tool for establishing its policies. In this context, Pyatt said the US opposed the North and South Stream pipelines, stressing that they are another tool in the hands of Moscow.

The ambassador stressed that importing liquefied gas from the United States could play an important role in diversifying supplies to Greece and Europe and recalled Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras's statement during his visit to the United States and his meeting with President Trump that Greece will become the third US gas importer in Europe. He pointed out that the US supports Greece's emerging role as an energy hub and has described our country as a pillar of stability and a strong partner of the West in a difficult environment.

The acquisition of the gas grid operator's DESFA's shares is a significant investment with a vision, that will show the way for other investors to follow, said Italian Ambassador Efisio Luigi Marras. He pointed out that one of the reasons for illegal immigration, an issue of concern for both Italy and Greece, is a lack of energy that increases the pressure on the European borders.

National Bank is willing to spend 2.0 billion euros on energy investments over the next five years, said Chief Executive Officer Leonidas Fragiadakis.

Transgaz loses bid for Greece’s grid operator - BUSINESS REVIEW

April 20, 2018 12:08
Sorin Melenciuc 

The consortium led by Spanish company Reganosa, including Romanian state-owned monopoly Transgaz and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), lost the bid for Greece’s grid operator DESFA, Athens accepting a EUR 535 million offer from the rival consortium led by Italy’s Snam, according to Reuters.

DESFA runs a gas transport network by pipelines of 1,459 km in Greece. The winning bidder was a consortium of Italy’s Snam, Spain’s Enagas Internacional and Belgium’s Fluxys.

The sale of a majority stake in DESFA is mandated under Greece’s latest international financial bailout. The Greek government is selling a 31 percent stake in DESFA and Hellenic Petroleum, Greece’s biggest oil refiner, 35 percent.

For Greece is the second attempt to sale the company, after a previous EUR 400 million deal with Azerbaijan’s SOCAR fell through.

For Transgaz, the bid was the first major attempt to step outside Romania, in an area dominated for decades by Russian giant Gazprom, the main gas supplyer of the countries from the region.

Greece accepts Snam-led consortium's offer for gas grid DESFA - REUTERS

APRIL 19, 2018 / 7:30 PM / 2 DAYS AGO

Angeliki Koutantou

• Athens relaunched the sale last year
• Named Snam-led consortium “preferred investor”
• Greece a crossroads for new gas routes, consortium says

ATHENS, April 19 (Reuters) - Greece has accepted a 535 million euro ($662 million) offer from a consortium led by Italy’s Snam for a majority stake in gas grid operator DESFA, naming it the “preferred investor”, its privatisation agency said on Thursday.

DESFA runs a network for transporting gas from the Greek-Bulgarian and Greek-Turkish borders via a 1,459-km (907-mile) pipeline. It also has a liquefied gas terminal facility on an islet off Athens.

Strategically-placed, Greece could represent an important crossroads for the diversification of supplies and new natural gas routes in Europe, the consortium said.

It anticipated the transaction would be finalised in the second half of 2018 after securing approvals, including antitrust clearance.

At least one DESFA sale offer believed to exceed €500m - ENERGY PRESS

16/04/2018

At least one of two second-round offers submitted last week by two consortiums participating in an international tender offering 66 percent of DESFA, the natural gas grid operator, exceeds 500 million euros, according to energypress sources.

Such a level, if confirmed, would be well above the tender’s first-round offers and a winning 400 million-euro bid that had been submitted by Azerbaijan’s Socar to a previous tender, also offering 66 percent of DESFA, which was not finalized.

In another bonus, the government appears to have secured Greek State rights for natural gas projects and infrastructure of strategic interest in a shareholders’ agreement to accompany the transfer of DESFA’s 66 percent to a new strategic investor.

Eastern Mediterranean gas discoveries redefine LNG playing field - LNG WORLD SHIPPING

Wed 28 Mar 2018

Mike Corkhill

The Eastern Mediterranean is fast becoming a gas hub, with numerous LNG projects, plentiful recent gas finds and likely further discoveries

Newly discovered offshore gas deposits in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of Egypt, Israel and Cyprus, coming on top of similar major finds in recent years, are poised to alter the energy map of the Eastern Mediterranean irrevocably. LNG projects, which already play a key role in the region’s gas distribution logistics, will be impacted by the upcoming development of the Eastern Mediterranean gas fields.

The majority of the LNG projects in the area are import schemes, and floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) have proved to be the most popular route to securing access to new gas supplies quickly and at relatively low cost. Turkey, Egypt, Israel and Jordan make use of FSRUs to import LNG while Greece, Cyprus and Lebanon are evaluating FSRU projects.

DESFA bids to finally be opened at end of this week - ENERGY PRESS

26 March 2018

Offers made by two bidding teams to an international tender offering a 66 percent stake of DESFA, the natural gas grid operator, are finally expected to be opened at the end of this week, a month and a half after they had been submitted.

TAIPED, the state privatization fund, has virtually completed its thorough processing and inspections of the offers submitted by the two bidding consortiums, while the participating teams have provided responses as to which respective team member plans to assume the management role, sources have informed.

For quite some time now, officials and pundits have appeared confident the offers may exceed 500 million euros, 25 percent over an offer made by Azerbaijan’s Socar in a previous and unfinished sale attempt.