Norwegian Energy Company Equinor To Invest $1.3Bln To Hammerfest LNG Terminal Development

Norwegian energy company Equinor announced on Tuesday its plans to invest $1.3 billion with its partners in the Snøhvit gas field to modernize the Hammerfest liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Norway

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th December, 2022) Norwegian energy company Equinor announced on Tuesday its plans to invest $1.3 billion with its partners in the Snøhvit gas field to modernize the Hammerfest liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Norway.

"The Snøhvit partners will invest NOK 13.2 billion ($1.3 billion) in upgrading the Hammerfest LNG plant, HLNG, at Melkøya. The project involves gas onshore compression and electrification and will secure the future of HLNG," the company said in a statement.

Gas compression modules will be installed at HLNG to help expand the production plateau and ensure sufficient gas flow from the reservoir, which, in turn, will help maintain a high level of LNG supply from the facility, the company said.

Instead of gas turbine generation, the terminal will use electricity, which is planned to be supplied to Hammerfest from the mainland, the company said, adding that this will reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from the plant by about 850,000 tonnes per year, which is equivalent to about 2% of Norway's total annual emissions.

"Snøhvit Future will strengthen Norway's position as a reliable and long-term supplier of LNG to Europe.

Electrification will allow us to deliver this gas with close to zero greenhouse gas emissions from production. The project will secure long-term operations and gas exports from Melkøya towards 2050," Geir Tungesvik, Equinor's executive vice president for projects, drilling and procurement said, as quoted by the company.

According to the company, under normal production conditions HLNG supplies 18.4 million cubic meters of gas per day, or 6.5 billion cubic meters per year, which is equivalent to the energy consumption of about 6.5 million European homes, or 5% of all Norwegian gas exports.

After the beginning of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022 and the adoption of several packages of sanctions against Moscow by the EU, the bloc has dramatically curbed its imports of Russian gas while looking for alternatives to Russian natural gas, following pledge to end its dependence on energy supplies from Russia. Since the start of Western sanctions campaign against Moscow, Norway became the leading exporter of natural gas to the EU, accounting for 25% of the union's total gas imports.