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Plan for 2nd LNG terminal

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The Government plans to build a second terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG), the fuel used to generate most of Singapore's electricity.

Potential sites in eastern Singapore are being studied for the terminal, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (right) said yesterday.

"This will enhance our energy security because it will geographically diversify our LNG import infrastructure," he said.

The new terminal will also support new industrial sites and power plants.

Mr Lee was speaking at the official opening of Singapore's first LNG terminal on Jurong Island.

More than 90 per cent of the country's electricity is generated using natural gas, which is cheaper and more environmentally friendly than oil.

Till the Singapore LNG Terminal was built, all the gas came through pipes from Malaysia and Indonesia.

To diversify the sources of the vital fuel, the Government built the LNG terminal, which can handle imports from all over the world.

It started operating in May last year and has already received shipments from countries such as Equatorial Guinea in Africa and Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean.

In addition to meeting its own energy needs, Singapore is trying to develop an LNG hub.

The shipments received by the new terminal have so far been used here. But the terminal can also hold LNG and reload it onto other vessels to be shipped elsewhere.

The terminal, which has three tanks now, can handle 6 million tonnes of LNG annually.

There are plans for a fourth tank which will raise the capacity to at least 9 million tonnes per year by 2017.

The terminal has space to accommodate seven storage tanks with a capacity of 15 million tonnes per year.

"But that's the limit because of land constraints," said Mr Lee. "Therefore we will build a second LNG terminal."

He did not give a timeline for that project.