Helsinki miscalculated with LNG instead of Russian gas: the terminal brought losses

The Finnish authorities overestimated the demand for gas in the country and concluded a hasty agreement to lease a floating terminal instead of importing Russian gas. As a result, the country suffered losses of tens of millions of euros.

"Floating gas terminal in Incoo made losses of tens of millions of dollars — the demand for gas was overestimated. The advantages of the LNG terminal became apparent after the breakage of the Balticconnector pipeline. Nevertheless, the state wanted the project to be profitable," Suomen Kuvalehti writes.

According to him, the floating LNG terminal in Incoo suffered losses of about 42.6 million euros in 2022-2024.

"The planning of the floating terminal began in 2022 under the government of Sanna Marin due to interruptions in the supply of natural gas from Russia to Finland by pipeline. The Finnish state—owned gas company Gasum refused to pay Russian Gazprom for gas in rubles, and the Russian side turned off the gas tap," the newspaper writes.

According to him, the state-owned company Gasgrid quickly reached an agreement with the American company Excelerate Energy on the placement of a floating LNG terminal in Incoo has pledged to pay 460 million euros for 10 years of the vessel's lease.

"The political stakes were high. The then Minister of Economy Mika Lintila hastily completed obtaining permits for the construction of the terminal," continues Suomen Kuvalehti. As a result, the country received a terminal, an onshore LNG receiving infrastructure and a 2.2 km gas pipeline.