27 April, 2022 by Juan Carlos Díaz Lorenzo

Fepeco Supports Tenerife's Commitment to Natural Gas

Oscar Izquierdo, president of FEPECO, highlights the bravery of Pedro Martín, president of the Insular Council, “in his fight for the introduction of natural gas in Tenerife, for the benefits it generates, emphasizing that this should be the behavior of the highest political representative of the island, promoting the general interest, even against the opinion of his party colleague, the counselor of Ecological Transition of the Government of the Canary Islands.”

“We value his strong positive positioning, highlighting the damage that would be caused to Tenerife if it is left out of the supply of liquefied gas to ships, because we cannot forget that, in 2025, the Trans-European Transport Network will require that the transport of goods by ship must use gas, as other types of supply will be prohibited,” he adds.

He even considers a “good alternative” a regasification plant at sea, around the port of Granadilla, “which would help reduce energy costs and improve the environment, while promoting renewable energies. A whole exercise in political responsibility,” he emphasizes.

The Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife has presented the project of Totisa Energía SLU to comply with European regulations regarding the supply of natural gas to ships, which according to its authors could become a reality in a period of three years, “guaranteeing future competitiveness and demonstrating their vision of the role of natural gas in the coming years.” At the same time, the proposal from last November makes sense, which aims to approve the use of natural gas for electricity generation in the Canary Islands and the method of calculating the price, for the purposes of the additional remuneration system, awaiting its upcoming publication.

“From a careful study of this project –continues the president of FEPECO– we can see that it goes beyond the supply of LNG to ships,” since it includes a regasification plant for the supply of natural gas to four generation groups totaling 70 MW, which will provide electrical supply to port needs “and to those that the system operator deems necessary,” as these facilities will be connected to the electrical system of Tenerife.

“This means that the electrical energy currently consumed in the port and produced in the current plants with diesel and fuel will be replaced by electrical energy produced with natural gas, and if the system operator considers it, the electrical energy from this city could be fed into the island's electrical system,” he concludes.