Saggas Raises The Dome Of Its Fourth LNG Storage Tank

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12 May 2010

Saggas has successfully completed the process of raising the dome of the fourth Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) storage tank. The commissioning of this new tank, scheduled for the first quarter of 2012, will allow Saggas to double its initial storage capacity, increasing it from the original 300,000m³ to the 600,000m³ it will have at its disposal in 2012.

The raising of the dome was attended by representatives from various administrative bodies. Among them, the Government Delegate for the Valencian Community, Ricardo Peralta, and the Regional Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Mario Flores. Alfredo Castelló, the mayor of Sagunto was also in attendance, alongside the CEO of the Port Authority of Valencia, Rafael Aznar, and Saggas CEO, José M. Egea, among others.

The construction of this fourth tank, along with that of a sixth vaporizer, forms part of a second phase of expansion for Saggas, included within the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism’s 2008-2016 Plan for the Electricity and Gas Sectors. Investment in this second expansion is estimated at 125 million euros and around 2,500 people are expected to be employed for it.

The construction process and the raising of the dome
As is essential for the construction of this type of facility, Saggas carried out parallel works on the tank’s external wall –measuring some 76 metres in diameter and 43 metres in height– and the dome, which was built in-situ within its perimeters. Once both works were completed, the dome, made of carbon steel and weighing approximately 500 tons, was then raised.Para llevar a cabo dicho proceso se cierra el tanque y se inyecta aire a un caudal de 44.000 m3/h.

To carry out this process, the tank was closed and air injected at a rate of 44,000m³/hour. This caused the dome to rise at an approximate pace of 30cm/minute, reaching a height of 43 metres after roughly 2.5 hours. Then, the dome was manually attached to the walls of the tank by soldering. Construction of the LNG storage tank will take an estimated 34 months. The dome was raised approximately halfway through the process (month 16). Over the coming months, Saggas will build the inner tank which, like a thermos, will maintain the liquid natural gas at a temperature of minus 160º.

In commercial operation since April 2006
Launched into commercial operation on 1 April 2006, Saggas currently has the capacity to supply up to 23% of Spain’s demand for natural gas. At present, the Sagunto regasification plant, located on 22 hectares of reclaimed land, has an LNG storage capacity of up to 450,000m³ and a regasification capacity of 1,000,000m³/hour. During 2009, Saggas received 100 LNG carriers, unloading a total of 4,296,437 tons of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG), and its activities represented 63% of total traffic of the Port of Sagunto.

Saggas has turned Sagunto into something of a national benchmark in the entry of natural gas into Spain, having reinforced the security of the national gas system and diversified its points of entry. The origins of the LNG received at Sagunto are very diverse: Egypt, Algeria, Nigeria, Qatar, Trinidad and Tobago, and Oman, among others.

Saggas shareholders include Unión Fenosa Gas, Iberdrola, Endesa Generación and Omán Oil Holdings Spain. The energy facility has turned Sagunto into one of the main points of entry for gas on the Spanish peninsula thanks to its strategic position along the Mediterranean rim, close to the producer countries of Northern Africa and the Middle East


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