MONTEVIDEO, Aug 17: Uruguay is seeking foreign companies to bid for the construction of a regasification plant near the capital Montevideo with an estimated investment of $400 million, government officials said on Thursday.
The plant would convert liquefied natural gas (LNG) back into the gaseous state for use in Uruguay and potentially for export to neighboring countries such as Argentina. A 15-year concession would be granted to the company that won the contract in a bidding process scheduled for October, they said.
The officials did not identify any prospective bidders, but noted that domestic companies lacked the necessary experience in this type of technology and that foreign expertise would be needed.
With a planned capacity to regasify 10 million cubic meters of LNG per day, the plant is scheduled to begin operations in late 2014.
The plant was originally planned as a bilateral project with Argentina, but Argentine state energy company Enarsa later pulled out, citing a need to prioritize investments at home.
‘This will give our country energy supplies that few Latin American countries have,’ said Raul Sendic, head of Uruguay’s state energy company Ancap, adding that the plant was crucial for ‘those companies that want to establish themselves in Uruguay and invest’.
Squeezed between South American giants Brazil and Argentina, Uruguay is led by President Jose Mujica, a former leftist guerrilla leader, who has promoted investment by sticking to a fairly orthodox policy menu. (AGENCIES)
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