Adriatic LNG has Bumper Year

Adriatic LNG, the gravity-based import terminal off Italy’s northeast coast, saw its highest ever utilisation rate last year, as it completed ten years’ service, the operator said February 5. For the first time, the terminal registered an annual rate of 95.6%, almost twice the European average of 50% and more than the previous record of 87% in 2010. It injected 7.6bn m³ into the grid, up 1.1bn m³ on 2018, and about a tenth of Italy’s demand.

Italian gas demand was up 2.3% year on year, at 73.8bn m³, thanks to increased power generation demand. Of the total, domestic production accounted for 4.5bn m³.

In order to meet gas market operators’ demand, last summer Adriatic LNG terminal successfully completed first tests in order to receive Q-Flex carriers too, which can transport up to 217,000 m³ of LNG, allowing more flexibility in the use of existing LNG fleets and improving terminal’s competitiveness.   

Adriatic LNG was the only regasification terminal in Italy to offer peak shaving service for this winter, in order to guarantee higher security for the national gas system. Adriatic LNG is co-controlled by US ExxonMobil, Qatar Petroleum and Italian transmission system operator Snam.