Poland imported a record volume of LNG last year, most of it from the US

A record 62 LNG cargoes arrived at Poland’s LNG terminal in Świnoujście last year, four more than a year earlier. Since it began operating in 2016, the terminal has received 268 LNG cargoes. Polish energy company Orlen reported.

According to Orlen, last year’s record 62 LNG cargoes amounted to around 4.7 million tonnes of LNG, equivalent to just under 7 billion m3 of natural gas in gaseous form.

"The last cargo arrived at the terminal on 29 December under a long-term contract with Qatari partner QatarEnergy LNG (formerly Qatargas). The LNG tanker "Al Sahla" delivered around 90 thousand tonnes of liquefied gas," Orlen said.

The United States was the largest supplier to Poland’s LNG terminal last year, with 41 cargoes under both long-term contracts and spot purchases. Qatar followed with 19 cargoes, while the final two came from Trinidad and Tobago and Equatorial Guinea.

Rising LNG imports to Poland

LNG imports to Poland increased significantly following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In 2021, 35 LNG tankers arrived at the Świnoujście terminal; in 2022, the number rose to 58 cargoes, with a total volume of 4.4 million tonnes (6.4 billion m3). That is equivalent to around a third of Poland’s gas consumption.

LNG imports to Poland are expected to continue growing, thanks to the planned opening of a new LNG terminal in Gdańsk in 2028. Orlen has already reserved the terminal’s full capacity, which is expected to be 6.1 billion m3/year.

Alongside expanding LNG terminal capacity, Poland is also focused on building its own fleet of LNG tankers.

"In October, a ceremony was held at the Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea, where two more ORLEN Group vessels were named: "Święta Barbara" and "Ignacy Łukasiewicz". These vessels will join the tankers "Lech Kaczyński" and "Grażyna Gęsicka", which are already sailing in international waters. The latter tanker delivered 8 cargoes to Poland in 2023, with a total volume of 0.5 million tonnes," Orlen added.