The first phase of the terminal — owned by U.S. oil major ExxonMobil, Qatari gas giant Qatargas and France’s Total — officially opened in May 2009.
“South Hook, as part of Qatargas 2 project, is ground breaking in terms of size, organisation, finance and its strategic importance. From the planning stages back in 2004 this Terminal’s completion has now become a reality,” Qatargas CEO states Faisal Al-Suwaidi said in a statement.
The first two storage tanks at the facility in the port of Milford Haven, each the size of London’s Albert Hall concert venue, were brought into service a year ago. The three extra tanks and other equipment commissioned since then increase the terminal’s total processing capacity to 15.6 million tonnes per year of LNG.
Most of South Hook’s LNG will come from Qatar, the world’s largest exporter.
Britain hopes increased LNG import capacity will help compensate for decling North Sea gas production.