Deadline Extended for Greek FSRU Capacity Bids
Greece's Gastrade has given bidders more time to submit offers for the import capacity of an LNG floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) it wants to position off the coast of Alexandroupolis, the company said in a statement on February 24.
Gastrade held the first phase of its market test for the project in late 2018, in which companies submitted non-binding expressions of interest to book 12.2bn m3/yr of import capacity - more than twice its design capacity of 5.5bn m3/yr. The second stage, in which binding offers will be accepted, was launched in January.
The deadline for bids, initially February 24, has now been extended to March 10, Gastrade said. What is more, parties that did not take part in the first phase of the test will also be allowed to file offers "in order to achieve the maximum possible participation," it said.
A final investment decision on the Alexandroupolis FSRU is expected to be taken in the third quarter of 2020, with operations scheduled to start in the third quarter of 2022. Gastrade's parent company Copelouzos is looking to bring on board Greek gas utility Depa and Bulgaria's Bulgartransgaz as partners in the project with 20% stakes each. Monaco-based GasLog already has a 20% stake in Gastrade, and Romania's Romgaz is also considering an investment in the company.
Greece currently has one LNG import terminal in Revithoussa, in operation since 2000. The Alexandroupolis facility will provide gas not only for the Greek market but also the wider region, via projects such as the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, due to start up later this year.