CEZ arranges LNG tanker shipping from USA to Netherlands for 1st time

Prague, May 23 (CTK) - Czech energy group CEZ has for the first time completely arranged the shipping of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker across the ocean from the USA to a Dutch terminal, while until now it ordered the gas shipment and took over the cargo at the terminal, CEZ said today.

CEZ has leased part of the terminal in Eemshaven since 2022. So far, 51 ships have arrived there with gas for the Czech Republic.

CEZ was now in charge of the entire navigation and logistics chain, that is negotiations with the liquefaction terminal in the United States, chartering of the ship, communication with the terminals, customs and tax matters and insurance, loading in the USA and the actual journey across the Atlantic Ocean, and the return of the ship.

A 300 metre tanker with 170,000 cubic metres of LNG arrived in the Netherlands in the middle of last week.

Eemshaven was the first LNG terminal to be launched in Europe since the start of the war in Ukraine, with the first ship arriving there in September 2022. The floating facility can process eight billion cubic metres of gas a year, of which up to three billion can go to the Czech Republic. In addition to CEZ, other well-known energy companies - British-Dutch Shell and French Engie - have also blocked capacity in the terminal.

"So far, 51 ships have arrived at the terminal with a cargo of 4.6 billion cubic metres of gas destined for the Czech Republic. Now, for the first time, we took over a ship off the coast of Texas and took care of its journey across the Atlantic Ocean," said Pavel Cyrani, deputy chairman of the CEZ board of directors.

The company did not specify the costs associated with the shipment.

According to CEZ, the handling of the whole process strengthens the company's know-how in commodity trading and the Czech Republic's energy security. "This is a very valuable experience for us, which has taken us a significant step further in the LNG trading process. The control over transportation allows us to be more flexible and in the future, for example, to redirect the ship to where the gas is most in demand. Control over the ship and its cargo also increases gas supply security," said David Viduna, CEZ's LNG manager.

CEZ has leased capacity at Eemshaven until 2027. Last year, it also secured shipments of about two billion cubic metres of gas a year from 2027, more than a quarter of the current domestic consumption, at an onshore terminal currently under construction in Stade near Hamburg, Germany. The company has signed a 15-year contract with the operator there, with an option to extend.

CEZ also declared that it will pursue opportunities to acquire capacity in other LNG terminals.

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