Cyprus signs landmark LNG deal

Cyprus on Friday signed a landmark deal with a Chinese-led consortium to build a EUR290 million terminal for the import of liquified natural gas for electricity generation, local media said.

At a ceremony in Nicosia, Cyprus' natural gas infrastructure company ETIFA, a subsidiary of Natural Gas Public Company, signed a contract to build its first LNG terminal with a multinational consortium led by China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering.

"This is a significant project that ushers Cyprus into the natural gas era," Duan Bingquan, deputy managing director of China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering, told reporters. The consortium also includes METRON (Greece), Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (China) and Wilhelmsen Ship Management (Norway).

The LNG terminal, to be completed by end 2021 or early 2022, will include a floating storage and re-gasification unit (FSRU), a jetty for mooring the FSRU, a jetty borne gas pipeline and related infrastructure.