Report LNG Energy Security Natural Gas Asia Europe

Belgian LNG terminal Zeebrugge supporting year-round Russian LNG supplies to non-European markets

March 29, 2022

Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz and Arjun Flora

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Key Findings

Fluxys, Belgium’s regulated monopoly gas grid operator, has been tapping the Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) export market to deliver dividend growth for its shareholders after a decade of flat gas demand in Belgium. In recent years, the company’s revenue growth has been driven by increased activity at the LNG Terminal in the port of Zeebrugge, which struggled with a utilisation rate of only 11% in 2016.

Zeebrugge LNG was initially conceived as a way to ensure a secure supply of gas for Belgium, and the terminal kept this basic role until its initial supply contract expired in 2007. Now however, the terminal functions as a multi-shipper terminal, supplying LNG to destinations all around the world.

Executive Summary

Revenue growth for Fluxys, Belgium’s regulated monopoly gas grid operator, has been driven recently by Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) transshipments that ultimately wind up in Asian, Middle Eastern, and South American markets.

Qatar has been the main supplier of LNG to Belgium since 2007, but there has been a significant increase in Russian LNG from its Yamal plant in the Siberian Arctic since 2018. A storage tank solely to support a 20-year transshipment contract with Yamal LNG was built in Zeebrugge in 2019, expanding the terminal’s LNG storage capacity by almost one-half. Since 2021, almost 90 percent of the total Yamal LNG exports that were transshipped at Zeebrugge have been sent to non-European markets.

Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz

Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz is an energy analyst for IEEFA’s Europe team. Her research focuses on topics related to gas and LNG, as well as other relevant European energy issues.

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Arjun Flora

Arjun Flora is Director of Energy Finance Studies, Europe. At IEEFA, Arjun is responsible for leading and building the Europe team, partnering with funders, campaigners and investors to maximize IEEFA’s impact. As a research analyst, he covers several topic areas relating to the energy transition in Europe, including power utilities, gas infrastructure, sustainable finance, renewable energy, energy markets and consumption trends.

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