Endesa has begun construction of its first vessel for transportation of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), which will have a capacity of 180,000 cubic metres (about 72 Olympic-size swimming pools) and will be completed during summer 2019. This latest generation LNG carrier with complete on-board re-liquefaction is owned by the Norwegian shipping company Knutsen Oas Shipping and will be built at one of the largest shipyards in the world, in South Korea.

The charter contract entered into by Endesa and Knutsen spans a period of 7 years with two possible extensions for seven and six years respectively, and will guarantee part of the maritime transport needs under the LNG purchase agreements held by both Endesa and the Enel Group (to which Endesa belongs) over the coming years. The value of the contract is some 25 million dollars per year, and the construction cost of the LNG carrier amounts to around 200 million dollars.

Endesa has agreed to purchase 2 bcm (two million cubic metres) of LNG from the Corpus Christi project in the USA, which will begin commercial operation in 2019 precisely, when the construction of the carrier is completed.

This is the first time that Endesa has chosen to time-charter its own LNG carrier, given that up to now it had chosen to contract LNG delivered at destination. After tendering the future LNG carriage services in 2016, this medium-term contract type was selected to cover needs over the next 20 years with flexible, competitive options.

The vessel, sailing under the Spanish flag, is 299 metres long and 48 metres wide with a draught of 26.4 metres. The volume of LNG transported by the LNG vessel is equal to one day's demand from the whole of Spain or the annual supply for a city of 170,000 households.

Endesa and the gas market

Endesa has a diversified energy mix and is present in both the electricity and the gas markets. The company is the second largest gas retailer in Spain, with an overall share of nearly 16,1 percent of the conventional market.

The total volume of gas sold by Endesa in Spain in 2017 amounted to 79,8 TWh, 2,2 percent more than in 2016. Endesa’s customer portfolio in the conventional natural gas market in December 2017 comprised more than 1.5 million supply points with consumption of almost 48 TWh/year excluding sales intended for electricity generation. In the international market, Endesa sold 24,5 TWh of natural gas in 2017, specifically in France, Portugal, the Netherlands and Germany, a 25,9 percent increase on the previous year.

About Endesa

Endesa is the leading company in the Spanish electricity sector and the second operator in the Portuguese electricity market: a company that provides services to more than 11 million customers and that directly employs more than 10,000 people.