LEGAL ASPECTS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUPPORT MECHANISMS FOR THE OPERATION OF THE SWINOUJSCIU LNG TERMINAL

The article “Legal aspects of the implementation of support mechanisms for the operation of the Swinoujscie LNG terminal ” by W&W’s Adam Wawrzynowicz and Tomasz Brzezinski appeared in the June issue of the monthly ” Nafta-Gaz ” (No. 6/2016), published by the Publishing House of the Institute of Oil and Gas – The National Research Institute.

Despite the expansion of the gas interconnectors on its western and southern borders, Poland is still overly dependent on gas supplies from the east and at risk of disruption of supply due to the geopolitical situation. In this context, the LNG terminal in Swinoujscie is crucial for Polish energy security as a new entry point to the national transmission system (NTS) providing access to the global LNG market and offering opportunities for the diversification of gas supply sources. At the same time, the full potential of the terminal building as an instrument of Polish energy security depends upon the demand for the services of the terminal, which will be determined by, among others, the attractiveness of the price of deliveries through the terminal compared to deliveries by other entry points to the NTS.

The article presents a framework for the potential implementation of mechanisms to increase the competitiveness and availability of the LNG terminal to market participants. In addition to legislation, it considers the jurisprudence of the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Commission, to be considered for possible support mechanism implementation plans in Poland for the operation of the terminal. The article cites the example of the successful implementation of the support system for the Klaipėda LNG terminal  notified to the European Commission in 2013.