Chief Minister Fabian Picardo met with Lloyd’s Register Chairman, Thomas Thune Andersen.The meeting was held at the Lloyd’s Register headquarters in London and both Commodore Bob Sanguinetti, Captain of the Port and Manuel Alecio, CEO GibElec were present. This followed a technical meeting, also in London, yesterday between Lloyd’s Register officials and a technical delegation from the Gibraltar authorities.

Following the meeting with Mr Andersen and further discussions with Tom Boardley, Lloyd’s Register’s Marine Director and John Wishart, Lloyd’s Register’s Energy Director, an agreement was formalised to start work to immediately scope requirements for an independent safety review on the plans for the power station and any LNG activity associated with it.

Lloyd’s Register will also work with HMGoG to advise on proposals for LNG bunkering which both parties agreed will be an important activity for Gibraltar as an international port over the next decade.

Lloyd’s Register agreed with HMGoG that both health and safety are paramount.

The Chief Minister stated: “I am very happy to start this collaboration with Lloyd’s Register which will demonstrate that an independent assessment of the proposals being made to Gibraltar for LNG storage and bunkering will be entirely safe. The Government’s, the Port's and the GEA's highly competent technical team has already met with Lloyd’s LNG experts who have carried out similar studies on other bunkering ports throughout the world. The Government is very confident in its project for clean power based on the confidence on safety which this association with Lloyd’s Register and other leading players in the field brings.”

LR’s Chairman, Thomas Thune Andersen said, ‘’Helping ensure that safety is always first is our job and we are looking forward to working with all Gibraltar stakeholders. Our independence and impartiality place us in a strong position to advise on this project to bring cleaner air and LNG bunkering opportunities to Gibraltar. The overall health benefits of reductions in local air emissions that are hazardous to health are important ambitions. The replacement of heavy fuel oil or distillate fuelled generators by gas generating capacity could provide a significant improvement in local air quality.”
Source: Lloyd’s Register