Turkiye is among the few countries in the world in this field with 3 Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Storage and Regasification Units (FSRU), which play an important role in energy supply security, and draws attention with its FSRU facilities, each with a gasification capacity of 28 million cubic meters.
Turkiye ranks 3rd in the world in terms of the number of FSRUs. Brazil ranks first with 6 FSRUs, Indonesia ranks 2nd with 5 FSRUs, followed by Turkiye and Germany with three FSRUs each. FSRUs in Turkiye rank first in the world in terms of total gasification capacity.
FSRU facilities are among the main investments for Turkiye, which has taken strategic steps to increase supply security in natural gas with the infrastructure projects it has developed.
Turkiye, which commissioned its first FSRU terminal in Izmir in 2016, has two other facilities operated by BOTAS, Dortyol FSRU and Saros FSRU.
LNG, brought by sea from different sources and countries, is stored in these FSRUs by ship-to-ship transfer and, when necessary, is re-gasified and delivered to the main transmission line.
FSRU terminals, which enable gas supply without being dependent on pipelines and contribute to supply flexibility, are expected to remain important as a storage and regasification solution in many countries for many years.
Hatay hosts the first Turkish flagged FSRU ship Ertugrul Gazi
Ertugrul Gazi FSRU, located in Dortyol district of Hatay, was put into operation on June 25, 2021.
Ertugrul Gazi FSRU Operations Manager Hakan Boyraci stated to the AA reporter that two different operations were carried out at the Dortyol sea terminal and said, “Our operations in crude oil pipeline management started in 1967. Our operations within the scope of FSRU terminal management started on February 7, 2018. On this date, MOL FSRU Challenger, the world’s largest FSRU ship, started to serve at our terminal.”
Stating that Ertugrul Gazi, the first Turkish-flagged FSRU ship, started to be built in South Korea in 2019, Boyraci stated that the ship was put into operation on June 25, 2021.
Boyraci pointed out that the ship can store 170 thousand cubic meters of LNG, equivalent to approximately 110 million cubic meters of natural gas in the gas phase, and said, “It has the capacity to gasify approximately 28 million cubic meters of LNG per day and ship it to the main transmission line. With this capacity, it is one of the largest FSRU ships in the world.”
Boyraci pointed out that 49 ship-to-ship LNG transfer operations have been carried out since June 25, 2021. “During these operations, we stored the equivalent of 4.4 billion standard cubic meters of LNG on our ship and re-gasified approximately 4.3 billion standard cubic meters of the stored LNG and delivered it to the transmission line. Through the environmentally friendly equipment on the ship, we have reduced the annual carbon dioxide emission of 1.5 million tons, equivalent to 145 thousand trees.”
Pointing out that the maximum storage capacity is 110 million standard cubic meters in the gas phase, Boyraci noted that refilling with gas can be done as needed, depending on the daily gasification amount.
Boyraci stated that energy diversity is important for energy supply security and continued as follows:
“In this context, BOTAS makes various agreements with countries that export LNG. Within the scope of these agreements, ships carrying LNG from all over the world visit our terminal. After these ships arrive at our terminal, connection is established by two ships coming side by side. After the connection, LNG transfer is carried out by installing the necessary transfer equipment. This LNG taken into our warehouse is passed through gasification systems again and sent to the main transmission line.”
Explaining that the LNG transfer between ships was completed in approximately 48 hours, Boyraci stated that the gasification process took approximately 4 days.
Hakan Boyraci emphasized that within the scope of preparations for the winter period, all necessary maintenance on the ship and pier sides were carried out and the systems were made ready, and said, “We are currently ready for the winter period at full capacity, both as the natural gas purchase side in our general directorate and as the natural gas transmission side here.”
Stating that the number of ships coming to the terminal to transfer LNG increases during the period when gas is needed, Boyraci said, “With the increasing domestic demand in the winter period, 5 or 6 LNG ships visit the terminal per month. This decreases to 1 ship per month in the summer period.”
Saros FSRU Terminal: Turkiye’s newest facility
Turkiye’s newest facility in the FSRU field, Saros FSRU Terminal, is located in Saros Bay in Kesan, Edirne.
Saros FSRU Terminal is located close to the points where Turkiye’s natural gas-based energy production and industrial facilities are concentrated and residential gas consumption is highest. Located in the Thrace part of the Marmara Region, the ship provides important support and a new entry point to the natural gas transmission system.
Turkiye’s third FSRU ship, which ensures the storage of LNG brought by sea from different countries and its gasification into the transmission system, serves at this terminal. The ship, which has a daily gasification capacity of 28 million cubic meters, can store 175 thousand cubic meters of LNG.
Saros FSRU Operations Manager Ali Kestane said that Saros FSRU Terminal, BOTAS’s second FSRU terminal, entered service in December 2022.
Kestane stated the following regarding the operation of the facility:
“The liquefied natural gas coming to our terminal via ships from various countries is transferred to our FSRU ship here. We carry out gasification and transfer it to the transmission line, depending on the need. We are connected to the main transmission line with a 17-kilometer pipeline.”
Stating that the facility contributes to the energy supply security of Turkiye and Europe, Kestane said, “The daily gasification capacity of our terminal is 28 million cubic meters. It stands out as a very important figure in terms of adding flexibility to energy supply security. So far, our terminal has carried out 10 ship-to-ship cargo operations and will continue to do so.”
Ali Kestane stated that each of the cargo operations in question involves the transfer of approximately 160 thousand cubic meters of LNG and said, “When our facility operates at full capacity, it has the capacity to meet 1/7 of our country’s annual need.”
Referring to the environmentally friendly features of the terminal, Kestane said, “During the construction of our facility, seagrasses were planted around the facility. We regularly monitor the seagrasses and control their development. Our terminal also received an international award with its seagrass transplantation project.”
Kestane also stated that 100 thousand olive saplings, 1 million lavender saplings and thousands of trees were planted in the region within the scope of coordinated work carried out with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Edirne Governorship.
Drawing attention to the increasing need for natural gas with the approaching winter period, Kestane said, “Our facility is ready for the intensity of the winter period. Our preparations are complete.”
Source: Trthaber / Prepared by Irem Yildiz