Eemshaven LNG terminal handled 92 ships for Czechia, delivering 14 months’ worth of gas

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Eemshaven, the Netherlands, which has been operating since September 2022, has handled a total of 92 ships carrying gas for Czechia in its four years of operation. The ships brought a total of 8.2 billion cubic metres of gas, equivalent to roughly 14 months of domestic gas consumption and more than four years of consumption by all Czech households. Imports are continuing at the same pace as last year, despite the crisis in the Middle East. Energy company ČEZ told the Czech News Agency (CTK). According to the company, the supplies contained no Russian gas, with most of the cargoes arriving on ships from the United States.

Eemshaven was the first LNG terminal to come online in Europe since the start of the war in Ukraine, with the first ship arriving there in September 2022. The facility can process eight billion cubic metres of gas per year, of which up to three billion can be sent to the Czech Republic. Alongside ČEZ, other well-known energy companies have also booked capacity at the terminal: British-Dutch Shell and France’s Engie.

So far this year alone, 20 ships chartered by ČEZ have arrived at the Dutch terminal, carrying a total of 1.8 billion cubic metres of gas.

"LNG deliveries through the Eemshaven facility helped us ensure sufficient gas supplies for Czech households and industry, even during the energy crisis. The current situation also confirms how important our decision to invest in capacity at the floating terminal was. The war in the Middle East has significantly disrupted global gas trade, but LNG for ČEZ continues to flow to Eemshaven without interruption. We transport most of the gas by tanker directly from fields in the United States," said ČEZ CEO Daniel Beneš.

According to the company, its involvement in the terminal’s operations has also helped with planning and negotiating supplies. "We actively negotiate with partners on the global market, which has paid off enormously this year, and we bought LNG in time even in the current tight market. We are also continually expanding our expertise in this area. For example, last year we delivered a ship to the terminal for the very first time and managed its entire voyage, from negotiating with the LNG supplier in the US and loading the ship to the voyage itself and its return," said David Viduna, ČEZ’s LNG manager.

ČEZ has leased capacity until September next year, but this year the government tasked the company with negotiating an extension of the lease. The terminal operator has yet to conclude talks with interested parties. In addition to Eemshaven, ČEZ plans to use the onshore terminal in Stade, Germany, in the future, and it also has a contract with Algeria’s state-owned company Sonatrach.