Why will the Golar Tundra go to Vado Ligure and not Genoa?
The groups contesting the Golar Tundra in Vado Ligure ask themselves: why didn't the regasification plant go to Genoa? And why didn't he stay in Piombino? here's the answers
The news of the transfer, in the second half of 2026, of the Golar Tundra regasification ship from Piombino to Vado Ligure triggered a strong protest reaction in the Savona area. However, the arguments of those opposed to the FSRU, the technical name of the regasification ship, are not always rational and supported by facts: beyond those who dispute its landscape impact – a criticism often also aimed at wind turbines -, there are those he spoke of the risk of an explosion comparable to that of an atomic bomb. It's not true: here are some false myths about the Golar Tundra in Vado Ligure.
WHY WILL THE GOLAR TUNDRA GO TO VADO LIGURE AND NOT TO GENOA?
Over the weekend, a demonstration was held against the regasification terminal in Vado Ligure. One of the most repeated things was, as reported by the Ligurian newspaper Il Secolo XIX : "Why does President Toti put the regasifier in our place instead of in Genoa?".
Giovanni Toti, president of the Liguria Region supported by the centre-right and commissioner of the regasification plant, actually explained it. First, the port of Genoa – one of the most important in Italy – was already considered too crowded to accommodate an FSRU. And then because Vado Ligure – about fifty kilometers to the west – is in a better position as it is closer to the main gas pipelines that supply the North-West. The choice was made by Snam, the company that manages the Italian gas pipeline network and owns Golar Tundra.
WHY DIDN'T THE GOLAR TUNDRA REMAIN IN PIOMBINO?
Another widespread dispute among those opposed to the LNG terminal essentially says: why didn't the Golar Tundra remain in Piombino, if it is so safe?
Beyond the logical fallacy – why should the same ship be safe in Piombino and dangerous a priori in Vado Ligure? -, there is a technical reason. In Italy, energy consumption is strong, especially in the North due to the greater concentration of industries. It therefore makes more sense, for reasons of transport advantages, to bring energy reception infrastructures closer to the centers of use.
In Liguria there is already a regasification terminal (on land), the one in Panigaglia. Also in the north, in Veneto, there is another regasification terminal, in Porto Viro. There is a regasification terminal (a ship like the Golar Tundra) also in Tuscany, in Livorno.
THE POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
The League is in favor of the Golar Tundra in Vado Ligure because – as explained by the Ligurian group leader Stefano Mai – "it is on the side of energy self-sufficiency to put a stop to the heavy repercussions of high energy prices on families and businesses". However, the Golar Tundra will not be able to improve Italian energy self-sufficiency – at most energy security – because its function is to return liquefied fuel imported from abroad to its gaseous state.
Yet the League, as noted by Secolo XIX , had some "reticence in signing the agenda in favor of the regasification terminal proposed" by Toti's supporters, starting with Angelo Vaccarezza, probably due to strong local protests.
Opposition councilor Ferruccio Sansa, close to Green Europe, the Italian Left and Elly Schlein's line in the Democratic Party, is opposed to the LNG terminal.
Finally, Carlo Calenda, secretary of Action, is in favor of the Golar Tundra in Vado Ligure, although the local section of the party is against the project. “The doubts”, explain the representatives of Azione in Savona, “do not derive from the plant itself, which we consider safe and also necessary, but from the project which involves its positioning just 4 km from Vado and 2.9 km from Savona , with a worrying proximity to the marine protected area of Bergeggi and the Savona coast, which thrive on seaside tourism that would be damaged by the presence of the plant. The exclusion zones, envisaged by the Livorno captain's office, would not be suitable for our area, as the ports of Savona and Vado would fall within them, which see a very important traffic of goods and people".
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/energia/golar-tundra-perche-vado-ligure-genova/ on Tue, 12 Sep 2023 12:29:39 +0000.