Wärtsilä’s Manga LNG import terminal in Röyttä Harbor, Tornio, in Northern Finland, achieved another significant milestone on 27 November 2017 with the successful unloading of the first shipment of LNG.
The shipment, comprising 15,000 cubic metres of LNG, arrived onboard the LNG carrier ‘Coral Energy’, a time-chartered LNG carrier operated by Skangas, on 19 November.
The cooldown process of the terminal and the LNG unloading process were completed on schedule over a period of 8 days, with all safety procedures fully secured. The successful unloading marks the beginning of the commissioning phase of the project.
The LNG from the terminal will be used to provide clean burning energy for local and regional industries in Northern Finland, Sweden and Norway, and will provide bunkering for LNG fuelled ships visiting the northern Baltic Sea waters. The terminal will play a notable role in promoting the economic growth of the region, while also reducing the carbon footprint of the region’s industrial operations. The commercial operation of the terminal will begin in summer 2018.
“The arrival and unloading of the first delivery of LNG at the new terminal marks an important new step for energy usage by local industries and shipping. Tornio is emerging as the regional hub in this Baltic Sea area, especially in Northern Finland and Sweden, which gives a considerable boost to the region,” says Mika Kolehmainen, CEO of Manga LNG Oy.
It is expected that more and more vessels operating in this part of the Baltic Sea will be powered by LNG fuel in order to comply with the Sulphur Emission Control Area (SECA) regulations. The world’s first LNG icebreaker, the ‘Polaris’, which is also driven by Wärtsilä dual-fuel engines, will be bunkered from the Tornio Manga terminal during this winter season already.
