Italian Port of Piombino to welcome new LNG terminal

The Port of Piombino in Italy will soon witness the commencement of commercial operations at its newly established floating terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Stefano Venier, CEO of Snam, Italy’s gas grid operator, announced that the terminal is scheduled to initiate its operations by the end of this month.

Reuters reported that during a press conference celebrating the arrival of the first LNG tanker in the Port of Piombino, Venier shared that the terminal will provide approximately 2 billion cubic metres of gas this year, with the capacity expected to rise to around 5 billion cubic metres in the following year.

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With its inauguration, the Piombino terminal will contribute to the availability of LNG in the region, bolstering Italy’s energy security and fostering the growth of its gas sector.

The terminal’s flexible infrastructure and storage capabilities are also poised to enhance the country’s capacity for receiving, regasifying, and distributing LNG as an alternative to Russian gas.

LNG is gaining increased attention in the sector.

In April, the Biden administration approved exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Alaska Gasline Development Corp’s Alaska LNG project.

More recently, Operadora Portuaria Centroamericana (OPC), International Container Terminal Services, Inc.’s (ICTSI) Honduran business unit that operates in Puerto Cortés, welcomed the inaugural call of containership SEABOARD BLUE.

This is the first boxship in the world to be converted from conventional diesel to liquified natural gas (LNG) propulsion.