Harland & Wolff secures UK gas storage licence
UK shipyard Harland & Wolff announced November 8 it had secured licences and environmental consent for the government from the Islandmagee gas storage project in Northern Ireland.
Islandmagee, situated in county Antrim in Northern Ireland, will store up to 500mn m3 of gas in seven salt caverns, providing more than 25% of the UK's storage capacity, Harland & Wolff said. Harland & Wolff secured government approval for the project last month, against a backdrop of record high gas prices in the UK and across Europe. It has now obtained a full marine licence and abstraction licence, as well as environmental and discharge consent.
Citing a report by Oxford Analytica, Harland & Wolff estimated that the project could generate £7mn ($9.5mn) for the local economy.
The gas crisis has shone a spotlight on the issue of energy security in the UK and across Europe. The UK government has faced criticism for the 2017 closure of the Centrica-operated gas storage facility, which once provided 70% of the country's gas storage capacity.