The “ALEXANDROUPOLIS” entered the waters of the Thracian Sea of Greece, according to the company's release. The floating, storage, and regasification unit “FSRU” sailed away from Singapore anchorage on November 26th and started her journey to her new home in Alexandroupolis, Greece after completing an almost 10-month conversion at the Seatrium shipyard. The FSRU’s arrival at its permanent berth largely marks the completion of construction of this flagship National and regional Project.
In the following days, the FSRU will be anchored through a spread 12-point mooring system. The FSRU will then be connected to the high-pressure subsea and onshore gas transmission pipeline, which, once operational, will deliver natural gas to the Greek Transmission System (“NNGTS”) and onwards to the final consumers in Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia and further to Moldova and Ukraine to the East and Hungary and Slovakia to the West. The Terminal, upon completion of all testing activities, is planned to be commercially operational in the first quarter of 2024 and will have a maximum sustainable regasification capacity of 5.5 billion cubic meters a year.
The arrival of the FSRU “ALEXANDROUPOLIS” highlights a key milestone for the Project, for Greece, and for the wider region of Southeastern and Central Europe. The Terminal will be a new entry-point for natural gas, fostering regional cooperation, and enhancing security of supply.
Gastrade is the first company in Greece to be granted an Independent Natural Gas System License. Gastrade studies, designs, constructs, operates, and exploits the necessary infrastructure for receiving, storing, transporting, and distributing natural gas in a safe, adequate, reliable, and cost-effective manner. The Company is founded on partnerships and based on complementarity. Its five-member shareholder structure consists of Ms. Elmina Copelouzou – the founding shareholder, GasLog, DEPA Commercial, Bulgartransgaz, and DESFA.
The Project has been co-financed by resources of the European Regional Development Fund of the European Union through the Operational Programme “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation (EPAnEK)” within the framework of the NSRF 2014-2020.