Portugal Plans to Use Sines Port for Shipping LNG to Europe
(Reuters) — Portugal plans to double the capacity at Sines port to handle LNG tankers and transfer the LNG on smaller vessels to European countries dependent on piped gas from Russia, two sources told Reuters on Friday.
One source said the plan being drawn up by the government "foresees, in the short term, exporting more than 2 billion cubic meters (Bcm) of LNG through Sines per year and soon after increasing exports to 5 Bcm — equivalent to Portugal's natural gas consumption".
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the European Union has been struggling to find alternatives to Russian gas supplies, which cover 40% of Europe's needs. Russia has demanded to be paid for gas in rubles in response to Western sanctions.
Total Russian supplies to Europe last year were around 155 Bcm, a figure Brussels wants to slash by two-thirds this year.
Both sources familiar with the matter said that using simple equipment and modest investment, Sines could start receiving two LNG tankers a week, instead of one now, with the objective of setting up the transshipping operation.
The second source said that this way there would be no need to increase the country's storage capacity, which would be costly and take time.
"It is an easy and quick solution. The government expects to finalize the feasibility study very soon, the implementation schedule and exact quantities," said the first source, adding that Germany could be a potential destination.
A spokesperson at the Environment Ministry, responsible for energy matters, declined to comment.
Portugal has said that Sines — the closest deep-water European port to the U.S. coast — could be a gateway for LNG from countries such as the United States, Nigeria or Trinidad and Tobago.
Both sources said the use of smaller ships for transshipment would also help to avoid over-congesting the North Sea with large LNG vessels, making deliveries easier.
Related News
Related News

- Enbridge Plans 86-Mile Pipeline Expansion, Bringing 850 Workers to Northern B.C.
- Intensity, Rainbow Energy to Build 344-Mile Gas Pipeline Across North Dakota
- U.S. Moves to Block Enterprise Products’ Exports to China Over Security Risk
- 208-Mile Mississippi-to-Alabama Gas Pipeline Moves Into FERC Review
- Strike Pioneers First-of-Its-Kind Pipe-in-Pipe Installation on Gulf Coast with Enbridge
- U.S. Pipeline Expansion to Add 99 Bcf/d, Mostly for LNG Export, Report Finds
- A Systematic Approach To Ensuring Pipeline Integrity
- 275-Mile Texas-to-Oklahoma Gas Pipeline Enters Open Season
- LNG Canada Start-Up Fails to Lift Gas Prices Amid Supply Glut
- Kinder Morgan Gas Volumes Climb as Power, LNG Demand Boost Pipeline Business
Comments