Governor Carlos Moisés (photo) announced last Friday, 28, the feasibility of implementing the Terminal Gas Sul (TGS) for the regasification of liquefied natural gas (LNG), in Babitonga Bay, in São Francisco do Sul . The Environmental Installation License was issued by the Institute of the Environment (IMA), linked to the State Secretariat for Sustainable Economic Development (SDE). The stage enables New Fortress Energy (NFE) for the public call.

About US$ 77 million will be invested in the project and more than 600 jobs will be generated during its implementation. The result confirms the importance of working together with the State Government and with the support of Invest SC, in fulfilling yet another of its missions, which is to bring new business to the State.

“Our goal is to offer development conditions and attract investments to Santa Catarina. Today we have taken another step in that direction. The Terminal is highly anticipated and will generate not only more jobs and income for Santa Catarina, but also competitiveness for our state, ”said Governor Carlos Moisés.

The terminal, a ship to be docked 300 meters off the coast, will have a capacity of 15 million m³/day. The connection to the land will be made by an underwater gas pipeline. Another important novelty is that availability may enable the development of projects for thermoelectric plants using natural gas.

For the secretary of Sustainable Economic Development (SDE), Luciano Buligon, an undertaking of this nature in Santa Catarina, not only contributes directly to the guidelines given by the Federal Government, but accelerates and brings the benefits to the people of Santa Catarina closer to reality.

“With the terminal, Santa Catarina will make a big leap of competitiveness in competitiveness with greater competition, expansion of the supply of input and more attractive prices. It also brings wide accessibility to energy supply, reaching places farther way from the gas access networks, as is the case of the West. And yet, it resolves the energy bottleneck, so that the State continues to grow. A strong reference to the work of the Carlos Moisés government, which bets on actions that add development, innovation and, consequently, wealth and employment in the state ”, points out the secretary.

The president of IMA, Daniel Vinícius Netto, highlitghed the importance of the work for Santa Catarina and for Brazil. “The submerged pipeline has no significant environmental impact on the entire operation. In any case, IMA has taken every precaution, establishing different conditions, to ensure environmental preservation. This venture will represent the increment of a new gas modal (LNG) not only for our state, but for Brazil and even for other countries ”.

Santa Catarina, Paraná and Rio Grande Do Sul consume about five million cubic meters of gas per day, destined for the industrial and automotive market. The only source of supply for the State is the Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline, which has also reached the limit of its capacity. With this new terminal, there will be an increase in the supply of natural gas to the southern region of Brazil.

The industry is the largest gas consumer in Santa Catarina. And during the pandemic, in this sector, there was an increase in consumption of 27% in the State, compared to the previous period.

The benefits

In addition to generating income, increasing the activities of industry, commerce and services, increasing tax revenue and strengthening the local, state and national economy, the terminal will bring other benefits, such as connecting the Brazilian gas market to the global one.

According to the Executive Secretary of International Affairs (SAI), Daniella Abreu, this is a very important international investment for the State and a structuring project for the development of Santa Catarina, that goes from being a gas consumer to becoming a supplier, strengthening its energy matrix.

"The SAI is very pleased to have contributed to the approval of this license and will continue to follow closely the new phases of the project, giving the necessary support to the international investor to feel confident of continuing to invest in our state," he says.

Upon entering into operation, the terminal will be supplied by LNG tankers, which will come from the United States, the West Coast of Africa or the Middle East.

“Our forecast is to make a total investment of US$ 77 million by the end of the year, which will change the configuration of the State and bring in many industries. Therefore, I want to thank the State Government for the professionalism and care in deepening the project and the attention given to the enterprise. We are committed to Santa Catarina and to the speed of the development of this project ”, strengthens the company's director, Edson Real.

Deployment chronology

After all the negotiations for the installation of the LNG Terminal initiated by Invest SC, through SDE, SCPar entered the action in 2019. Since then, all the bodies necessary and relevant to this process have been working together.

In March 2019, the State Environmental Institute (IMA) granted the Preliminary Environmental License (LAP) to implement the project.

In September 2020, PGE issued an opinion indicating that the IMA should present documents proving the public utility of the project. The agency demonstrated that the service provided by the terminal will benefit all people from Santa Catarina.

In the same month, the state government brought together representatives from various departments, such as SCGás and SCPar, for the alignment of the terminal installation project. A group formed by technicians and representatives from all the departments and agencies involved, as well as specialists in the energy and gas sector, was formed to monitor the final licensing process with the IMA.

The Environment Institute of the State of Santa Catarina (IMA) approved the Environmental Installation License (LAI) for the installation of the Gas Sul Terminal, which gives the start of the million-dollar investment.