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GDF Suez has announced that it has signed a 15-year BOOT (Build, Own, Operate and Transfer) contract with Gas Sayago S.A. for LNG storage and regasification services in Uruguay. Commercial operation of the new terminal is expected in 2015.

Located in the Punta Sayago area, close to Montevideo, the offshore terminal, GNL del Plata, will comprise a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) and a jetty, protected by a 1.5 km breakwater. The entire capacity of the terminal, which will be capable of receiving LNG carriers up to 218,000m cubic metres (cbm), will be reserved by the off-taker Gas Sayago.

Development of LNG regasification capacity forms part of Uruguay’s Energy Policy 2005-2030 and has been identified as a priority by the government. GNL del Plata is one of Uruguay’s most important infrastructure projects and looks set to contribute to a significant change in the country’s energy mix by providing an additional clean fuel source with access to international markets. The project will also reduce the proportion of imported oil in the country’s energy supply.

The LNG terminal will have a long-term storage capacity of 263,000 cbm and regasification capacity of 10 Mega standard cubic metres per day (MSm3/d), expandable to 15 Msm3/day. The Shuttle Regasification Vessel GDF Suez Neptune will be used as a bridge solution before the delivery of the new-built FSRU contracted to Mitsui O.S.K. Lines. Tractebel Engineering will act as owner engineer during the construction phase.

Gérard Mestrallet, Chairman and CEO of GDF Suez, commented: "GNL del Plata marks our entry into the Uruguayan market and further expands our presence in Latin America, which is a key growth region for our Group. LNG demand in the region is expected to more than double within the next 10 years and this terminal will allow us to support the development of the LNG industry and to strengthen our global LNG footprint and experience."

GDF Suez is an experienced operator of LNG facilities in South America. Since 2010, GDF Suez has been operating the GNL Mejillones plant in Chile - an LNG regasification terminal able to deliver up to 5 million cbm of natural gas per day to power generators to meet copper mining and industry demand.