BP Amoco PLC Friday said it will make an undisclosed multimillion-dollar investment in the Atlantic basin's first fully integrated LNG power project in northern Spain.
The Bahia de Bizkaia project, in which BP Amoco has a combined 25% interest, is the largest ever investment in the Basque country, says the firm. The project consists of an 800 Mw combined-cycle gas turbine power plant, a 2.75 billion cu m/year (bcm/year) regasification facility, an LNG import terminal, and 300,000 cu m of storage capacity.
The three other partners in the project are Repsol-YPF SA, Spain's Iberdrola Energia SA, and the Basque Energy Authority (EVE). Each has 25% equity in the groups that will develop the facilities�the Bahia de Bizkaia Gas group that will develop the regasification plant and the Bahia de Bizkaia Electricidad group that will develop the power station.
BP Amoco Global Power Pres. Zin Smati sais, "This is a further commitment to Spain, an important energy market, and one of the fastest growing natural gas markets in Europe. Over the next decade natural gas consumption is expected to double to well over 30 bcm/year."
He said the project takes fuel from the wellhead to the transmission wire and demonstrates BP Amoco's range of skills in integrated energy development.
Bilbao-based contractor Babcock & Wilcox Espa�ola has been appointed consortium construction leader on the $310 million power plant project. Spain's Initec will lead the consortium to construct the $240 million regasification plant. Construction is expected to begin near yearend 2000, with the power station scheduled to begin operation by yearend 2002; the regasification facility is scheduled to be commissioned by mid-2003.
Of the regasification plant's output, 1.1 bcm/year will be supplied to the power plant; 1 bcm/year to Gas de Euskadi, the gas distributor for the Basque country; and 0.6 bcm/year to Repsol-YPF. The facility will be designed for potential future expansion to 6 bcm/year.
Earlier this year, the government of Trinidad and Tobago approved a two-train LNG expansion project for the Atlantic LNG facility in which BP Amoco and Repsol are shareholders. BP Amoco will supply just over 60% of the natural gas for the two trains. Some 60% of the output of the expanded plant will be sold to Spanish buyers including Repsol for use in the Spanish market.
A major LNG importer, Spain is one of the fastest growing Atlantic basin gas markets, with much of the growth tied to expected new gas-fired power generation capacity.