Some called them as bridge solution.
Some said it is not an LNG terminal just because it was not on land.
Some complained that it is an expensive solution.
Some said they are ships with some unreliable regasification apparels.
Yet FSRUs have proven to be The Solution. Look at Netherlands who already has a land based solution, Germany who was told not the have the proper seashores to accommodate LNG ships (whose draught is similar to large container vessels, due to the low density of LNG), or Turkey being at the crossroads of pipelines from gas rich countries and the demand center, Europe.
When you have a long term strategy and a bigger than one ship’s size of storage, and cost of construction is low, you still may build on-land storages and regasification units but probably one of the most innovative solutions in history of natural gas is the FSRU.
Floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) are specialized ships that are used to store and convert liquefied natural gas (LNG) into its gaseous form. These units have become increasingly popular as a way to import and distribute natural gas to areas that do not have access to traditional gas pipelines, or as a fast solution when bullish(!) gas suppliers want to or have to interrupt your gas supply via pipelines.
FSRUs consist of a large, floating storage tank that is used to hold the LNG in its liquid form. The LNG is delivered to the FSRU by tanker and is then transferred to the cryogenic storage tank, where it is kept at a temperature of -162°C (-260°F) to keep it as liquid as long as possible.
When the LNG is needed, it is pumped from the storage tank and sent to a regasification unit, where it is heated and converted back into its gaseous form. The resulting natural gas can then be distributed to consumers through a network of pipelines or directly to customer pipeline eg. to generate electricity at a power plant.
One of the main advantages of using FSRUs is their flexibility and mobility. Unlike traditional on-land LNG terminals, which are fixed structures, FSRUs can be easily moved to different locations as needed. This makes them ideal for use in remote areas or in regions where there is a need for temporary or emergency gas supplies by utilizing the “liquid” LNG markets in the world without being dependent on the resource sole country/countries of the pipeline gas.
Another advantage of FSRUs is their relatively low cost. Because they are floating units, they do not require the expensive infrastructure that is needed to build a land-based terminal. They can be built faster than a land based LNG Terminal and they do not require that much land as they are on the water and the need for land based infrastructure (e.g. metering station) is limited. Additionally, they can be leased on a short-term basis, which makes them a cost-effective solution for importing natural gas.
Despite their many benefits, FSRUs also have some limitations. You need an additional pier for the LNG carriers to load or you have to rely on Ship-to Ship transfers, which can be hard in adverse weather conditions. The scheduling of cargoes seem to be the biggest issue, but years of FSRU operations and with the growing LNG industry this has been proven wrong many times with so many FSRUs around the world.
With recent events and changing political environment, pipeline interruptions, changing supply and demand dynamics and some countries like Lithuania, Turkey, Egypt, and recently Germany have used FSRUs as the solution to their problems and FSRUs by delivering as expected have proven to be The Solution!
Sometimes the solution is just in front of you and you have to open your eyes, and your mind!