Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC) announced on Monday it had received its first LNG shipment at Al-Zour import terminal, as the facility prepares to start operating its permanent units soon, state news agency KUNA reported.
The 213,000 cubic metres shipment arrived on a Qatari tanker Al Kharsaah, the agency said citing a company spokesperson, adding that a second shipment will arrive on a 217,000 cubic metres vessel, also from Qatar.
Kuwait has been increasingly relying on imported gas to meet local power demand, especially during summer when air conditioning usage soars, but it is also focusing on ramping up gas production as part of its 2040 growth strategy.
Construction of Al-Zour 22 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) terminal was to be completed in the first quarter of 2021, but faced delays due to the pandemic.
The terminal, owned by Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) and developed by KIPIC, will be the largest import terminal in the Middle East, with eight storage tanks with a capacity of about 225,000 cubic metres and a regasification facility with a capacity of three billion cubic metres of gas per day.
The terminal was established to meet Kuwait's growing demand for cleaner fuel to generate electricity as well as the needs of natural gas consumers such as oil refineries and petrochemical industries, according to KIPIC's website.