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The pile foundations of two planned 200,000-cubic-meter LNG storage tanks at the GCL Huidong Jiangsu Rudong LNG Terminal project are completed. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

The expansion is proceeding apace of the GCL Huidong Jiangsu Rudong LNG Terminal – located at Yangkou Port in Nantong city, in East China's Jiangsu province – which on completion will add major new capacity to the facility and boost the energy security of the region.

The pile foundations of two new 200,000-cubic-meter LNG storage tanks were completed on Feb 16, marking the start of the construction phase of the pedestals and tank bodies.

As a major provincial energy infrastructure project, the expansion of the terminal will involve a total investment of about 5 billion yuan ($725.58 million). It mainly includes the construction of storage facilities, unloading and loading terminals and intake and discharge facilities.

The project is scheduled to be completed and start operating in the first half of 2025. After reaching production capacity, it is expected to deliver about 4 billion cubic meters of natural gas to the national pipeline network annually, with an annual output value of about 1.2 billion yuan and annual tax payments of 270 million yuan.

According to Gai Xiaofeng, general manager of terminal operator GCL Huidong LNG Rudong Co Ltd, the project will simultaneously build a large and a small terminal.

The large terminal will mainly be used for unloading imported LNG, while the small terminal will be tasked with directly transporting imported gas to the Yangtze River and the inland river area by small LNG vessels.

"This project is the first LNG terminal project in China that integrates multiple businesses and functions such as LNG unloading, storage, gas-liquid transportation and loading and transportation," Gai said.

The GCL Huidong Jiangsu Rudong LNG Terminal is the third LNG terminal located at Yangkou Port. Its expansion will help Yangkou Port become a national energy hub.

By the end of 2025, the annual LNG unloading capacity of Yangkou Port will reach 28 million metric tons.