Gas infrastructure company Fluxys has agreed with Hanseatic Energy Hub to join the LNG terminal project in Stade near Hamburg as an industrial partner.
Closing of the agreement is expected upon completion of the default merger clearance procedure with the competent authorities, FLuxys said in its statement on Wednesday.
The entry of Fluxys into the project complements the recent investment into Hanseatic Energy Hub by Partners Group, the leading global private markets firm, on behalf of its clients.
The LNG terminal project would provide the largest gas market in Europe with an additional entry point by complementing an existing industrial cluster in Stade.
The facility is to offer a substantial send-out capacity of natural gas and unlock LNG as an alternative fuel in shipping and heavy-duty transport as well.
The project is an opportunity for Fluxys to deliver on its growth ambition in Europe by strengthening and diversifying its infrastructure presence in Germany, the statement reads.
For Fluxys the project fits tightly with its strategy to contribute to the energy transition. The LNG terminal in Stade can support Germany in its phase-out of nuclear, coal and lignite-fired electricity generation by diversifying the country’s natural gas supply routes in the context of increasing import needs.
Manfred Schubert , partner and managing director for Hanseatic Energy Hub, said, “We have been on the lookout for a world-class industrial partner to join the development and operate the terminal on a long-term basis, and we found that in Fluxys. “
Hanseatic Energy Hub and Fluxys plan to jointly build a near-zero carbon footprint LNG terminal that uses excess heat from local industry for the regasification process.
The terminal is envisaged to become an LNG distribution hub by providing logistics via rail, road, small LNG ships and barges, and also by offering bio-LNG to the shipping and heavy-duty transport markets.
Pascal De Buck , CEO of Fluxys, said, “The Stade LNG terminal is set to be a key enabler of Germany’s energy transition by creating an additional energy entry gate for LNG and low carbon gases with clean operations integrated in the Stade industrial cluster.”