Gassco Begins Process to Replace Norsea Terminal

Norwegian gas transporter Gassco has announced today that it has awarded Linde Engineering Dresden a contract to build a replacement for the Norsea Gas Terminal.

The Norsea Gas Terminal, which supplies a large proportion of Norwegian gas to Germany, has been operating since 1977. It will be replaced the Gassco Emden Project (GEP), which is due to begin construction in the autumn of this year. The GEP is due to be completed and operational by December 2015 at a cost of NOK 2 billion (€27 million).

Though the new terminal will not have any increased capacity over the existing Norsea terminal, Gassco said today that it would be suited to receiving gas from fields in the Ekofisk area and other parts of the Norwegian continental shelf. 

The choice of Linde Engineering Dresden as the winner of the contract was reached after consideration of several bidding companies.

Commenting on the decision,  Gassco chief executive Brian Bjordal said, "Our main aim is to ensure safe and efficient project execution, and we’re confident that we can achieve this together with the chosen contractor."

Gassco awarded the contract to Linde on behalf of Gassled, a consortium of companies which formally owns the Norwegian gas transport system. Petoro is the licencee and majority shareholder of that venture with a 45.793 per cent stake.