On June 8, on the premises of the Lech Kaczyński LNG Terminal, a ceremony welcoming the first LNG delivery from the US to Poland took place.
The event was attended by representatives from the Polish state-owned oil and gas company PGNiG, Cheniere Energy and ERU Trading. Cheniere delivered the liquefied gas as part of a spot contract signed with PGNiG. ERU Trading is PGNiG’s intermediary for gas trading in Ukraine.
„We want such events to become a routine. We don’t want to celebrate LNG deliveries from the US, because we want them to become commonplace,” said PGNiG’s CEO Piotr Woźniak.
„We want the terms of gas deliveries that we presently have to become civilized,” he added when commenting on the long-term contract with Russian Gazprom, which is criticized by the Polish company. „We want to replace the delivery portfolio from the east, where we are always concerned about supply stoppages, with reliable deliveries,” he added.
„We held talks with Cheniere in the USA. The future looks very promising. We are opening the market for US companies. This is a great opportunity, not only from a trade perspective, but also in political terms. We would like American companies to appreciate those efforts,” Woźniak admitted.
The Polish Prime Minister, Beata Szydło also said a few words. „This is a historical day. However, such days will become a routine. Lech Kaczyński LNG terminal guarantees Poland’s security, and this is one of the priorities that guided the people who originated the idea of an LNG terminal in Świnoujście,” she stressed. „We need to enumerate two people in this context – the late President Lech Kaczyński, whose strategic approach led to the construction of the terminal, as well as chairman Jarosław Kaczyński, who ensured the project’s financing in times when some doubted it was possible,” she added.
„This investment has two goals: security and development,” she said. „The path chosen by the Polish government is moving in the right direction, and most of all we are successful.”
„This is also a matter of security, independence and sovereignty. We always talk about these issues in numerous contexts, because this is how we understand Poland’s security,” said the Prime Minister.
A letter written by Jarosław Kaczyński, chairman of the ruling Law and Justice Party, was read out. „My brother, Lech Kaczyński, wanted to diversify the supply of raw materials to Poland,” Kaczyński wrote. He also mentioned the Wawel Declaration signed by the late President and leaders of Central and Eastern Europe in the Kraków castle.
„I am hoping that today’s delivery will become a forerunner of reliable supply from the US to the Lech Kaczyński LNG terminal,” the letter continued.
„This is not just about a new trade relation between the US and Poland. This is the first LNG delivery to PGNiG, and we are hoping this is the first of many,” said representative of Cheniere Energy, Andrew Walker.