Portugal’s Sines port ready to transfer LNG to rest of Europe

Portugal’s Sines port is ready to start onward shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which arrives in large tankers and will be transferred to smaller vessels to head to other European states, a government spokesperson has said.

He said a government feasibility study concluded that “with the existing infrastructure and simultaneous operations, Sines could transfer to central and northern Europe up to 10 billion cubic metres (353 billion cu ft) of LNG annually” within six to 12 months.

That amount, double Portugal’s own natural gas consumption, could increase in the longer term if required, he added.

“Some countries have expressed interest in evaluating this possibility, and technical contacts are taking place,” he said of the plans to ship LNG on to other European states, like Germany and Poland, although he did not elaborate about those contacts.