Page 166 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - MARTIOS 2023

COMMODITIES

LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS (LNG) Adding this to the results of the 2021 auction, 5
domestic and 3 international users have reserved
Strong interest in the Revithoussa Terminal 40 of the 45 available slots to unload a quantity
DESFA’s auction process for the allocation of of 32.5 TW in 2024. The reserved Gasification
unloading slots and gasification capacity at the Capacity for 2024 corresponds to 72% of the
Revithoussa LNG Terminal for the 2023-2027 Maximum Gasification (regasification) potential of
period has attracted strong interest from domes- Revithoussa.
tic and foreign users of the National Natural Gas For 2025, 30 out of the 45 slots offered were
System. The annual planning for 2023, 2024, 2025 reserved for unloading 25.5 TW by the 5 domestic
and 2026 was finalised in January, while the rele- and 1 foreign user who participated. The reserved
vant process for 2027 was recently also completed. Gasification Capacity for 2025 corresponds to
For the year 2023, all 26 slots, corresponding to 55% of the Maximum Gasification Capacity of
the unloading of a total quantity of 19TW, were Revithoussa.
reserved. Taking into account the slots auctioned For the year 2026, 21 out of the 45 slots offered
in 2021 for the year 2023, overall, 43 slots have were reserved for unloading 16.5 TW by 3 domestic
been reserved for unloading 36TW by 4 domestic and 1 foreign user who took part in the process.
and 3 foreign users. Therefore, the reserved Gas- For the year 2027, in the auction completed at the
ification Capacity for 2023 corresponds to 80% end of January, 21 of the 45 slots offered, corre-
of the Terminal’s Maximum Gasification Capacity sponding to a total of 17 TW, were reserved by 1
(regasification). domestic and 1 foreign user.
For the year 2024, 25 out of the 30 slots offered The significant interest of users creates a favour-
have been reserved for unloading a quantity of 17.5 able condition regarding the security of supply
TW. A total of 9 users participated in the bidding of Greece and the wider region, given the sub-
process, of which 5 were domestic and 3 foreign. stantial increase in exports to Bulgaria and the
broader Southeastern Europe region that has been
recorded in the past year.

A tight market expected in 2023
European gas prices have collapsed over the North-
ern Hemisphere winter. Mild weather and weak
industrial demand have ensured that gas storage
has remained strong. “The region got through this
winter comfortably, and prospects also look better
for the 23/24 winter”, says ING.
A well-supplied European market has meant that
there have been some shifts in regional spreads.
Most noticeable is the spread between TTF and
Asian spot LNG. For the bulk of last year, TTF was
trading at a premium to Asian LNG in order to pull
in cargoes and make up for Russian supply losses.
However, since mid-December, TTF is trading at a
discount to Asia. This should support the redirecting
of LNG cargoes towards Asia.
Weaker Chinese demand through 2022 offered
relief to Europe. Last year, China imported 87bcm
of LNG, down 20% year-on-year and the weakest
annual import volume since 2019. However, the
relaxation of Covid measures and several support
measures to help the domestic property sector
could drive a recovery in demand this year. China
also has a larger volume of contracts with fixed des-
tination clauses this year (100bcm vs 88bcm last
year, according to the IEA).
Ultimately though, Chinese demand is a big uncer-
tainty for the global LNG market. While an increase
in demand is expected, it is difficult to gauge pre-
cisely how much stronger it could be this year, notes

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