Portland Gas Project Under Ap

RNS Number : 0178C

Portland Gas plc

05 November 2009

 



5 November 2009                                                                                             For Immediate Release

Portland Gas plc

European Investment Bank places the Portland Gas Storage Project under appraisal

The Directors of Portland Gas plc (AIM: PTG) ("the Company") are pleased to announce that the European Investment Bank ("EIB") has confirmed that it has listed the Portland Gas Storage Project in its pipeline of projects under appraisal.

The EIB supports projects which contribute to energy diversification and security at EU level. The pipeline of projects under appraisal by the EIB are listed on the website  http://www.eib.org/projects/pipeline/index.htm.

Commenting on the news, Andrew Hindle, CEO of Portland Gas plc said:

"We are delighted that the Portland Project, which will support energy security of supply and the efficient functioning of the gas market, has received this under appraisal status from the EIB." 

For further information please contact:

Portland Gas plc

Andrew Hindle, Chief Executive Officer                             020 8332 1200

Craig Gouws, Chief Financial Officer

PR - Watershed

Sara Hudston                                                                01308 420785

Investor Relations - Buchanan Communications 

Ben Willey                                                                   020 7466 5000

Nominated Advisor and Broker - Seymour Pierce 

Jonathan Wright                                                           020 7107 8000

Sarah Jacobs 

Richard Redmayne

  Notes to Editors:

Background on Portland Gas plc

Portland Gas' business is focused on the development of two gas storage projects in the United Kingdom at Portland, Dorset and at Islandmagee, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The two projects could between them provide over 10% of the total UK and Ireland peak daily demand in the latter part of the next decade. The Company is also developing new projects in mainland Europe initially focussing on Germany and Spain. The Company is one of only a few in Europe focused specifically on gas storage development, a sector with significant growth potential in Europe over the coming decades. In order that the "Portland Gas" name can remain with the Portland Project where it is very well established in Dorset, the Directors intend to seek approval at the next Annual General Meeting of the Company, scheduled for December 2009, to change the name of Portland Gas plc to "Infrastrata plc". The Portland Project company, Portland Gas Holdings Limited, would then be renamed to "Portland Gas Limited".

Portland Project

At a projected 1,000 million cubic metres ("mcm") or 35 billion cubic feet ("bcf") of working gas, the facility would be the largest onshore gas storage facility in the UK. Planning permission was granted by Dorset County Council in May 2008 and Pipeline Construction Authorisation was granted by the BERR (now known as the Department of Energy and Climate Change) in July 2008. The gas storage facility is designed to inject or withdraw gas at 20mcm per day. The current estimate of total development cost for the project is £456m. The project will use brine compensation technology and will not require cushion gas. 

In October 2009 a Co-operation Group ("Group") was established consisting of five companies who have each expressed an interest in possibly acquiring a working interest in the Portland Project, together with Infrastrata UK Limited (the subsidiary of Portland Gas plc that currently owns Portland Gas Holdings Limited ("PGL")). The Group will work together to conduct a feasibility study in respect of the Project. PGL's legal advisor, Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP, will draw up a Shareholders' Agreement and a separate Capacity Agreement. In parallel, PGL's project finance advisor, BNP Paribas, will work on the development of the financing structure.

Further information is available on the Company's website www.portland-gas.com. 

 

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