Centrica PLC and Centrica Storage
Centrica plc is the parent company of British Gas and several other large energy companies. It is the largest supplier of gas to domestic customers in the UK and one of the largest suppliers of electricity.
Offering a distinctive range of home energy solutions and low-carbon products and services Centrica plc is at the forefront of the energy sector.
Centrica Storage Limited (CSL) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Centrica plc. It operates the Rough gas storage facility in the southern North Sea, the Easington onshore gas processing terminal in East Yorkshire and also manages the Langeled gas receiving terminal on behalf of Gassco.
The Rough Storage facility was bought in November 2002 and stores gas under the North Sea on behalf of a number of companies, including other Centrica owned businesses, to meet seasonal peak demands. The Rough Storage facility represents more than 75% of existing gas storage capacity in the UK.
Centrica plc Natural Gas Storage Projects
In addition to Caythorpe, Centrica plc (with relevant partners) is proposing to develop two further natural gas storage facilities in the UK with the aim of implementing a multi-asset, multi-product gas storage model.
Baird Gas Storage Project
Centrica plc has a controlling 70 per cent interest in a project to convert the Baird gas field in the southern North Sea into the UK's second largest gas storage facility. Perenco UK retains the remaining 30 per cent stake in the project. CSL is managing the design and project development before a final investment decision is made. It is anticipated that the project will commence commercial operations in 2013. The proposed Baird storage facility would have capacity of approximately 60 billion cubic feet (bcf), just over half the 118 bcf capacity of Rough, the UK's largest gas storage facility.
Bains Gas Storage Project
The Bains project proposes to convert the existing partly depleted Bains field, five miles north east of Centrica's South Morecambe field, to a storage facility with a dedicated twenty mile pipeline to the Barrow onshore terminal. A new normally unmanned offshore platform and additional gas processing facilities within the existing South Morecambe Terminal would be required. The facility could be available to come online for gas production and injection in the winter of 2013, with a storage capacity of up to 20 billion cubic feet (bcf). Centrica's remaining partners in the project are Gaz de France and 1st Oil.