ZAGREB, November 18. 2018 - The Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, will arrive in Croatia for a visit on Monday, the Office of the President of Croatia said on Friday, at a time when Croatia has still not decided on a supplier of gas for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal to be built on the island of Krk. The Qatari emir is coming to Zagreb for a reciprocal visit, after President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović visited Doha in April 2017.

Qatar has shown interest in building and supplying gas for a floating LNG terminal, a strategic project of Croatia and the EU that should be put into operation in 2021 and reduce Europe's dependence on Russian gas.

Despite relatively frequent top-level meetings and a visit by Qatari experts to Croatia, the two governments have still not made any concrete deal regarding the LNG terminal project, which has been delayed for years. "If we do not begin building it, energy and other routes will bypass us," Grabar-Kitarović said during her visit to Doha.

"So far, we have been the reason for this situation. We decided to build the terminal at the same time when Poland did. Their terminal started operating a year ago, while we have still not started building ours," Grabar-Kitarović said at the time.

The LNG Hrvatska company in early November chose a Norwegian bid for the floating terminal, which is actually a vessel for liquefied gas. The supplier of gas for the future terminal has not been chosen yet.

Qatar has the world's third biggest gas reserves, and in 2017 the world's biggest gas field, South Fars, owned by Qatar and Iran, was opened. Energy products account for 90% of Qatar's exports and for more than 75% of its budget revenue. The emirate has around 2.5 million inhabitants, of whom 310,000 are Qataris.

Apart from Grabar-Kitarović, Sheikh Al Thani will also meet with Parliament Speaker Gordan Jandroković and Prime Minister Andrej Plenković.

For more on the LNG terminal, click here.

ZAGREB, November 9, 2018 - LNG Croatia on Friday reported that it had selected a bid from the Norwegian Golar Power Limited company for the conversion of the existing LNG carrier to a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) vessel, which is valued at 159.6 million euro.

LNG Croatia received three bids during the procurement procedure and selected the Norwegian bid as the most advantageous.

Golar Power will deliver a new FSRU conversion vessel to the terminal site, which is in accordance with the highest technical and environmental protection standards, the company said on its web site.

Depending on the outcome of the Open Season procedure (obligatory capacity booking), which will close on 20 December 2018, and the adoption of a positive investment decision, the FSRU will be delivered between 30 September and 30 October 2020, in order for the terminal to be fully operational by 1 January 2021, the company said.

The selected FSRU vessel has a storage capacity of 140,000 cubic metres, with a nominal regasification capacity of 300,000 cubic metres of natural gas per hour, giving a yearly capacity of 2.6 billion cubic metres of gas, which is in accordance with the technical capacity of the gas transmission system of the Republic of Croatia.

Although the use of electro-chlorination does not have a negative environmental impact, given the local community's position, LNG will not use chlorine during the regasification process.

LNG Croatia has also considered solutions which enable mechanical cleaning of the system from marine growth which occurs due to the use of sea water, LNG Croatia said.

The more pressing issue for the LNG project in Croatia is the lack of interested future buyers of gas which is supposed to be delivered through the terminal. The Open Season procedure has been repeatedly extended due to the fact that no one seems to have applied to use the terminal if it is ever built.

For more on the LNG terminal which will perhaps be constructed in Croatia, click here.

There doesn’t seem to be much interest for Croatia’s future LNG terminal.

The never-ending story continues.

ZAGREB, June 20, 2018 - The United States appreciates very much Croatia's contribution to global security and its efforts regarding the European Union's energy diversification, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs A. Wess Mitchell said after talks with senior Croatian officials in Zagreb on Wednesday.

ZAGREB, June 14, 2018 - Croatia's 151-seat legislature on Thursday passed the Law on the Terminal for Liquefied Natural Gas, colloquially dubbed Lex LNG, by 77 votes in favour and 25 against, after weeks of heated debates on this topic in public and among experts and despite vociferous opposition of the local community on the Island of Krk and Primorje-Gorski Kotar County to the law.

ZAGREB, May 25, 2018 - The president of the Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) parliamentary group Branko Bačić said on Friday that due to a large number of submitted amendments, parliament would not vote on Friday on the government-sponsored bill on a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal, the so called Lex LNG, announcing that the parliament could vote on the bill next week or in early June.

ZAGREB, May 24, 2018 - Opposition parties in the Croatian parliament led by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Thursday lashed out against the Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal Bill which should pave the way for the construction of an LNG terminal on the northern Adriatic island of Krk, describing it as "a rape of the constitution and democracy", a waste of taxpayers' money and "a second stage of the sale of Croatia."

Russia’s controversial ambassador again criticises Croatia for its attitude towards his country.

ZAGREB, May 10, 2018 - The government on Thursday sent to parliament a draft legislation on a liquefied natural gas terminal which would enable the implementation of the strategic project of the LNG terminal on the northern Adriatic island of Krk within deadlines.