Dunkirk LNG (Dunkerque LNG) terminal’s future operator Gaz-Opale, a joint venture between EDF and Fluxys, carried out due diligence process at the terminal site recently.
Luc Sabbe, deputy terminal manager at Gaz-Opale, said the inspection was carried out at the interface facilities between the LNG tanker and the terminal’s loading facility.
The inspection that lasted two days had to confirm the safety, reliability and environmental protection, both under normal operating conditions and in the event of an incident, a Dunkirk LNG construction update said.
Several major areas were in focus during the inspection, the management and organisation of Dunkirk LNG and Gaz-Opale, navigation and pilotage, the pier and sizing, LNG transfers, the pier/ship interface from a technical and organisational viewpoint, the terminal maintenance etc., the statement said.
Depending on the results of the inspection, Sabbe said the OCIMF, an international organisation of LNG terminal users, would grant its approval.
It was noted that some improvements are necessary before the terminal transfers from the industrial testing phase to the commissioning and operating phase.
France’s fourth LNG import terminal located in the port of Dunkirk said in February it expects to receive its first cargo of the chilled fuel in June this year.
The LNG terminal will have an annual regasification capacity of 13 billion cbm of gas, enough to cover about 20% of France and Belgium’s annual gas consumption.
EDF owns a 65% stake in Dunkirk LNG. Fluxys of Belgium has a 25% share in the terminal, and Total owns the remaining 10 percent.
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LNG World News Staff