Since the start of its commercial operation in 2021, the LNG terminal on the Croatian island of Krk has regasified more than 6.6 million cubic metres of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and delivered more than 4 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas into Croatia’s transmission system, the terminal’s operator, LNG Hrvatska announced earlier this month.
In particular, the Krk terminal accounted for 60 per cent of all quantities of natural gas that entered the transport system of Croatia in the last gas year. Since the start of the current gas year, more than 8 LNG carriers have arrived thus far, with more than 20 expected to arrive by October 2023.
“All the above proves the importance of the Terminal for the natural gas market in the Republic of Croatia and this part of Europe,” as stated in LNG Hrvatska’s press release.
Indeed, 2022 has been a key year for the Krk terminal as its role in regional energy security continues to grow. In August, the first-ever LNG delivery via the Krk terminal arrived in Hungary, establishing a new natural gas supply route for the landlocked country.
Announcing a political agreement between Qatar and Hungary on LNG supplies, the Hungarian Trade and Foreign Affairs Minister, Péter Szijjártó, said that the planned expansion of the Krk terminal will present “a realistic opportunity for Qatari gas to enter Hungary’s natural gas supply within a period of approximately three years”.
At present, the terminal has the capacity to send up to 2.6 bcm per year of natural gas into Croatia’s grid. In June, the Croatian Prime Minister, Andrej Plenković, announced the expansion of the existing floating LNG terminal on Krk Island, from 2.9 to 6.1 bcm of gas per year.
Last week, the KRK terminal docked its 50th LNG delivery since the first day of commercial operation, delivered by the Kmarin Diamond carrier from the United States. Also from the US is the latest LNG carrier Al Khattiya which arrived at the terminal yesterday.
