Floating LNG terminal "Independence" sails into Klaipėda

The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), built for Lithuania’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal, sailed into the port of Klaipėda on Monday morning. At a welcoming ceremony in the afternoon, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė and Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius said this was a groundbreaking achievement in the country's aspiration for energy independence.

The Korean-made vessel, aptly named "The Independence", appeared near Klaipėda shortly after 8 AM local time.

The vessel measures 294 metres in length, 46 metres in width and 47 metres in height. Her speed is 18 knots. A total of 25,000 tonnes of steel were used for her construction. The vessel has 4 LNG storage tanks of a total capacity of 170,000 cubic metres.

The official welcoming ceremony in Lithuania's western Baltic port on Monday afternoon is attended by Lithuanian leaders, Estonian Foreign Trade and Entrepreneurship Minister Anne Sulling, Latvian Prime Minister Lamdota Straujuma as well as delegates from the US Senate, Norway, Finland, Sweden, the European Commission.