Nicosia is looking into the possibility of leasing out its soon to be ready 125,000 m³ ‘Etyfa Prometheas’ Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) as the requisite infrastructure for receiving the ship will not be ready before Q4 at best – 2024 looks more likely. It had previously hoped that the FSRU would be in place by July this year (MEES, 15 April 2022). The FSRU, which has been converted from the Galea LNG tanker, is currently undergoing final tests at the Cosco Shipyard in China and is due to set sail for Cyprus in the summer.
But work at the onshore terminal at Vasilikos on the island’s south coast, adjacent to the key 868MW Vasilikos Power Station has been exceedingly slow and is only around 40% complete according to Energy Minister George Papanastasiou. The Vasilikos plant’s two 220MW CCGTs are currently run on diesel and will need to be converted and then tested to receive natural gas, a process that could take anywhere between six to 12 months, according to local media reports. (CONTINUED - 266 WORDS)