Importing liquified gas to begin in 2015

Ministry calls for an expression of interest to procure and operate liquefied gas facilities

The Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW) has called companies interested in the construction of a facility for importing Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to apply for an Expression of Interest at the ministry.

The project will consist of the procurement and operation of an LNG floating storage and re-gasification unit vessel (to be operational starting 2015), as well as the construction and operation of an offshore LNG unloading structure where the vessel can be berthed.

The MoEW concluded, last March, feasibility studies for a plan to import natural gas for producing electricity. The plan also involves installing a 175 kilometer-pipeline to transfer and distribute the imported gas. The Minister of Energy and Water, Gebran Bassil, was optimistic about this option. He said that producing electricity through natural gas could save the power plants up to $1 billion per year.

According to Bassil, Lebanon can import gas in its liquid form through the sea from Qatar, Yemen, Algeria, and Egypt. In a 2010 study commissioned by the World Bank, US-based firm ‘Poten & Partners’ recommended that Lebanon import liquid gas from these countries and construct the floating storage re-gasification unit. The cost of constructing the unit was estimated at around $200 million.

Reported by Hanadi Chami