FOS CAVAOU LNG TERMINAL: A NEW MAJOR IMPORT GATE FOR EUROPE

摘要

Thanks to flexibility and source diversity, LNG is improving its market share in Europe. With the aim of balancing natural gas flows between the north and south of France and facilitating French and European market access from new Middle East and Mediterranean sources, especially from Egypt, the Gaz de France Major Infrastructures Division decided to build a third LNG terminal in the industrial port area of Fos-sur-Mer. Total entered in the project in 2005, and the Société du Terminal Méthanier de Fos Cavaou, a subsidiary of Gaz de France and Total, will handle commercial management of terminal capacities. Operation and maintenance will be carried out by Gaz de France through an O&M contract. Ideally located, at the heart of advantageous infrastructures, the Fos Cavaou LNG terminal will be a new major import gate for Europe.rnWith forty years of experience in LNG, Gaz de France has favoured safety and environmental protection in project design. To live up to the public's expectations, Gaz de France has designed and modified the project in order to reduce visual and environmental impact. Location advantages and effective choices are made explicit. With an investment slightly upper than 400 million euros, the Fos Cavaou terminal will receive 8.25 billion m~3 of natural gas per year with a 2,100 m~3/h LNG send-out flow rate. Situated on an 800,000 m~2 tract of land, it comprises one berth, three 110,000 m~3 LNG tanks and will exclusively use sea water vaporizers in order to minimize CO_2 emissions.rnFollowing the bidding process, at the end of May 2004, Gaz de France entrusted terminal construction to an experimented joint venture by means of an EPC contract. Start up is scheduled at the end of 2007. Construction phases are described below.