Appeal fails to topple Polish-Turkish consortium as FSRU contractor

With the appeal procedure now out of the way, Poland’s gas transmission system operator Gaz-System has confirmed that the previously chosen general contractor remains the right pick for the job of bringing to life the offshore section of the country’s floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), which will be part of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the Gulf of Gdańsk.

Gaz-System inked a deal with a consortium comprising Gap İnşaat Anasayfa, Unitek İnşaat San, and Fabe Polska in April 2025 to prepare the executive design, supply machinery and equipment, get necessary permits, and construct the marine part of the FSRU program, as well as the launch of the country’s first FSRU, which is targeted for the first quarter of 2028.

The company has welcomed the completion of the stage of activities related to the selection of the contractor for the offshore part of the FSRU, in which it was possible for participants of the purchasing process to submit appeals against its result. Currently, work on both the offshore and onshore parts of the FSRU project is perceived to be proceeding without disruption.

“Gaz-System considers the tender procedure for the selection of contractors for the offshore part of the FSRU in the Gulf of Gdańsk as completed. The correctness of the conclusion of the agreement with the Polish-Turkish consortium has been confirmed,” emphasized the Polish firm.

However, the Polish player explains that the prolonged appeal procedure may not remain without consequences for the previously adopted investment implementation schedule. Regardless of potential issues, all entities involved in the investment are said to currently be focused on the implementation of their tasks to ensure that the investment is implemented on time.

“Due to the non-public nature of the tender procedures, the confidentiality of information in the scope of appeal procedures and the fact that the company is bound by confidentiality agreements, no further details can be disclosed by the company,” underlined Gaz-System.

According to the company, the offshore gas pipeline and the shore section, together with the onshore network infrastructure for the FSRU, will be built by Polish companies, whose share in the implementation of the offshore part already amounts to 70%. The Polish-Turkish consortium has also reported such a share of Polish companies among subcontractors performing specialist works and deliveries. 

Furthermore, Gaz-System reveals that nearly PLN 2 billion (almost $528.8 million) is going to Polish companies as part of the work on the onshore segment of the FSRU program, which is seen as a complex investment project, covering several elements that the firm needs to implement in parallel, ensuring their full operational readiness and integration with the national transmission system at the time of the FSRU terminal’s launch.

To this end, the Polish player signed 28 contracts last year for supplies and services necessary to build 250 kilometers of gas pipelines from Gdańsk to Gustorzyn. These deals were given to pipe and fittings manufacturers and construction and supervision service providers exclusively from Poland, based on the place of registration of business activity. 

Since over 97% of contracts in 2024 were signed with Polish entrepreneurs, the total value of orders awarded to local companies in this part of the FSRU investment amounts to around PLN 1.8 billion ($475.75 million). With all other orders in 2024 in mind, excluding contracts for the implementation of the FSRU program, Gaz-System concluded 1,526 contracts for a total amount of over PLN 2.1 billion (more than $555.3 million).

The company points out that only 42 contracts, amounting to approximately PLN 331 million (about $87.53 million) were inked with foreign contractors, mainly entities from the European Union countries; thus, only 2.7% of contracts were penned with players outside Poland, constituting around 15% of all contracts in value terms. 

Regarding the contract value, the firm elaborates that among the 30 largest purchase contracts, other than FSRU, only two of those signed in 2024 were concluded with foreign contractors from the European Union, which come from Belgium and the Netherlands, as a result of the lack of domestic implementation potential in the segment of specialist production and services. 

Gaz-System has reiterated that Polish suppliers and contractors will implement the entire onshore part of the FRSU program and 70% of its offshore part. The building permit for the offshore section of the FSRU project was obtained in December 2024.

Once HD Hyundai Heavy Industries builds the FSRU at its shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, the unit will be operated by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) under a long-term time charter party (TCP) agreement. This will be Poland’s second LNG terminal, after the first one, known as the President Lech Kaczyński LNG terminal in Świnoujście, boosted its regasification capacity to 8.3 billion cubic meters (bcm).