Under EU State aid rules, the European Commission has approved Polish plans to support the increase of the regasification capacity (from 5 to 7.5 billion cubic metres per year), as well the development of additional functionalities, of the LNG terminal in Świnoujście, Poland.
The Commission approved the aid for the construction of this LNG terminal in 2011. The increase in capacity was included in the list of Projects of Common Interest of the EU as part of the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) corridor.
The Polish LNG will receive PLN 553 million (€128 million) from the European Regional Development Fund and the Cohesion Fund, under the 2014-20 Infrastructure and Environment Operational Programme, which has among its priorities the improvement of energy security.
The European Commission assessed the measure under EU State aid rules, in particular the Commission 2014 Guidelines on State aid for environmental protection and energy, and found that it is in line with the requirements of the Guidelines.
The guidelines seek to support EU Member States in reaching their 2020 climate targets, while addressing the market distortions that may result from subsidies granted to renewable energy sources.
The project is expected to contribute to ensuring security of gas supplies in Poland and in the Baltic countries by making supplies more diverse and promoting new gas transport routes in the region.
The primary objective of the Baltic Energy Market Interconnection Plan (BEMIP) initiative is to achieve an open and integrated regional electricity and gas market between EU countries in the Baltic Sea region, ending energy isolation.
