Investment Projects
In 2011, capital expenditure incurred by the Trade and Storage segment was PLN 545 m. The key projects were related to the construction and expansion of the underground gas storage facilities and included:
- construction of the surface part of the Wierzchowice Underground Gas Storage Facility;
- commencement of cavern leaching as part of the construction of the Kosakowo Underground Gas Storage Cavern Facility;
- construction of four caverns of the Mogilno Underground Gas Storage Cavern Facility.
In addition, the projects carried out in the Trade and Storage segment included information and communication technology projects, purchase and clarification of the legal status of real property, and construction work on gas pipelines.
Storage Facilities
PGNiG owns and operates eight underground gas storage facilities, located in two different types of geological structures (salt caverns or depleted gas and oil reservoirs), with different injection and withdrawal capacities. Six of them are used to store high-methane gas and two – to store nitrogen-rich gas.
Our UGS facilities allow us to maintain continuous deliveries of gas in periods of increased demand (winter) as well as an adequate level of reserves for periods of short-term disruptions in gas supplies caused by system failures or limited gas availability.
These facilities help us meet our obligations to store mandatory natural gas stocks, imposed under the Act on Mandatory Reserves. They also help us optimise the natural gas supply chain and enable PGNiG to respond to sudden short-term changes in demand. Moreover, as the operator of these facilities, we are able to maintain steady production levels throughout the year: in periods of reduced demand, gas is injected to the storage facilities, while in times of peak demand (not coverable with the current production), it is drawn from the facilities. The storage facilities also allow us to meet the obligations under the take-or-pay gas import contracts.
In response to the market demand for gas storage services, PGNiG has separated a dedicated branch, a Storage System Operator, responsible for commercialising storage, injection and retrieval capacities of the storage facilities. The process of legal separation of the storage operations to Operator Systemu Magazynowania Sp. z o.o., PGNiG’s wholly-own subsidiary, which will launch its operations in 2012, is currently underway.
In 2011, PGNiG made available, under TPA (Third Party Access) arrangements, a total of 1,378.5 m m³ of working storage capacity, provided on a continuous or intermittent basis, of which 1,357.0 m m³ was made available under long-term agreements and 21.5 m m³ under short-term contracts.
As at the end of 2011, the working capacity of the underground storage facilities was 1.60 bn m³ for high-methane gas and 0.23 bn m³ for nitrogen-rich gas. In the high-methane gas storage facilities PGNiG maintains mandatory stocks, the use of which is within the discretion of the Ministry of Economy.
| High-methane gas | Working capacity [m m³] 2011 |
Working capacity [m m³] Target capacity |
Year extension/construction completed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brzeźnica | 65 | 100 | 2014 |
| Husów | 350 | 500 | 2014 |
| Kosakowo | 0 | 250 | 2021 |
| Mogilno | 378 | 841 | 2021 |
| Strachocina | 150 | 330 | 2012 |
| Swarzów | 90 | 90 | – |
| Wierzchowice | 575 | 1200 | 2012 |
Nitrogen-rich gas |
|||
| Bonikowo | 200 | 200 | – |
| Daszewo | 30 | 30 | – |
Underground Gas Storage Facilities operated by PGNiG
Bonikowo Underground Gas Storage Facility – storage facility for Lw nitrogen-rich gas with the working capacity of 200 m m³. UGS Bonikowo was commissioned in 2010. The facility will help optimise the production of Lw nitrogen-rich gas in western Poland.
Brzeźnica Underground Gas Storage Facility – high-methane gas storage facility with the working capacity of 65 m m³. The preparation toward the extension of the facility’s working capacity to 100 m m³ is under way.
Daszewo Underground Gas Storage Facility – storage facility for Ls nitrogen-rich gas with the working capacity of 30 m m³, located in a partially depleted crude oil reservoir. UGS Daszewo is used to optimise production and supply of Ls gas to the Koszalin region at times of peak demand.
Husów Underground Gas Storage Facility – high-methane gas storage facility with the working capacity of 350 m m³. The facility’s working capacity is currently being extended to 500 m m³.
Mogilno Underground Gas Storage Cavern Facility – high-methane gas storage facility with the working capacity of 378 m m³. The facility is located in salt caverns, which enables high injection and drawing capacities to be achieved. UGSC Mogilno is currently being extended to 841 m m³ of storage capacity. Completion of the extension work is scheduled for 2021.
Strachocina Underground Gas Storage Facility – high-methane gas storage facility with the working capacity of 150 m m³. The facility’s working capacity after extension will be 330 m m³. Presently, the facility undergoes operational tests.
Swarzów Underground Gas Storage Facility – high-methane gas storage facility with the working capacity of 90 m m³. The Swarzów site is one of the longest-serving gas storage facilities in Poland.
Wierzchowice Underground Gas Storage Facility – high-methane gas storage facility, located in a partially depleted nitrogen-rich gas reservoir. With the working capacity of 575 m m³, it is the largest underground gas storage facility in Poland. A project is underway to increase the facility’s working capacity to 1,200 m m³ and its completion is scheduled for 2012. Further extension is feasible, to 3,500 m m³ of working capacity.
One storage facility is currently under construction:
Kosakowo Underground Gas Storage Cavern Facility – high-methane gas storage facility, to be located in the vicinity of the Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot agglomeration. The facility’s working capacity is planned at 250 m m³. Completion of the Kosakowo project is scheduled for 2021.
In 2010, under the EU’s Infrastructure and Environment Operational Programme, PGNiG and the Oil and Gas Institute of Kraków executed agreements on co-financing of the following projects: UGS Wierzchowice (up to PLN 503.6 m) and UGS Kosakowo (up to PLN 93.5 m). The amount of co-financing depends on the fulfilment of a number of conditions specified in the respective agreements.
Under an annex of December 29th 2011 to the agreement on co-financing of projects:
- “The Strachocina Underground Gas Storage Facility” – the expenditure qualification period was extended until June 30th 2012; and
- “The Wierzchowice Underground Gas Storage Facility” – the expenditure qualification period was extended until March 31st 2014.
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