TIRANA (Albania), November 4 (SeeNews) – Italy's Falcione Group will launch the construction of a one-billion euro ($1.47 billion) LNG regasification terminal in Albania next year, with 90% of the produced gas to be sent to Italy via a pipeline under the Adriatic Sea, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
The terminal will be able to cover 10% of Italy's annual LNG demand, Reuters quoted the chairman of Falcione Energia, Edmondo Falcione, as saying.
"We shall import 8 bcm annually [...] 800,000 million cubic metres will be used in Albania," Falcione told Reuters in an interview without mentioning where the LNG would come from.
"We are completing the executive project and waiting for the final authorisation to connect to the Italian grid. We plan to start work activities within 2010."
Italy, which depends heavily on gas imports, will need some 40 bcm of gas by 2020, or a sixth of the projected demand in the European Union, Reuters quoted Falcione as saying.
"The project (gas) first goes to Italy because it is bankable. But we think there are very good opportunities for development in Albania and the Balkans. We have agreed with the government we can increase the capacity to 12 bcm," Falcione said.
The Falcione group has acquired 30 hectares of land in southern Albania to develop the project, signed by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and his Albanian counterpart Sali Berisha last year.
Falcione said the company planned to spend 800 million euro to build the terminal and a further 200 million euros to build the 125-km pipeline on the Adriatic Sea bed at 850 metres depth, linking Brindisi with southern Albania.