Dunkirk LNG Now Commissioned

EDF announced January 3 that the Dunkirk LNG import terminal in northern France was officially commissioned on January 1.

With regasification capacity of 13bn m³/yr (9.5mn mt/yr), it is the second largest in mainland Europe and the only one in Europe directly connected to France and Belgium, said EDF. It adds that the plant's capacity is sufficient to cover 20% of both countries' annual gas consumption, if required.

The facility has a jetty that can receive up to 150 LNG tankers per year: from the largest Q-Max-sized ones in the world (up to 267,000 m^³ in size) down to mid-sized tankers for regional markets (65,000 m³). It also boasts three LNG storage tanks, each of 200,000 m³ capacity.

A regasification unit, made up of ten heat exchangers, is supplied with tepid water from the nearby Gravelines nuclear power plant via a 5 km long subsea tunnel; that arrangement alone provides energy savings equivalent to the town of Dunkirk's annual gas consumption.

View of the Dunkirk terminal (Photo credit: EDF)

EDF executive director for gas and Italy, Marc Benayoun, thanked  "EDF, partners and contractors teams who have worked together since 2012 to complete this strategic asset." Fluxys CEO Pascal de Buck said his company was proud to have contributed its 30 years of LNG expertise to the project.

Construction of the terminal alone cost about €1bn, excluding the cost of upgrading and building pipelines to integrate it to the French and Belgian gas systems. The terminal’s first commissioning cargo arrived in Dunkirk on July 8 from Nigeria. 

The terminal is owned and operated by Dunkerque LNG, 65%-owned by French power giant EDF, 25% by Belgian gas grid Fluxys and 10% by Total. Now that it is fully commissioned, it will be operated by Gaz Opale which is 51%-owned by Dunkerque LNG and 49% by Fluxys.

The Fluxys-owned and operated 9bn m³/yr LNG terminal in neighbouring Belgium started operations in 1987. 

Mark Smedley