Start of Construction


 

TIDMPTG 
 
RNS Number : 6186V 
Portland Gas plc 
14 July 2009 
 

 
 
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| For Immediate Release                 |                          14 July 2009 | 
+---------------------------------------+---------------------------------------+ 
 
 
 
 
Portland Gas 
 
 
Date set for the start of construction of the Portland Project 
 
 
 
 
The Directors of Portland Gas plc (AIM: PTG) ("the Company" or "Portland Gas") 
today announce that it plans to commence construction of the Portland Project on 
31st July 2009. The initial works on the wellpad will be performed by Hydrock 
Group Limited. 
 
 
In parallel the Company will launch a formal process shortly to secure full 
funding for the project. An Information Memorandum, process timetable and the 
project construction programme are currently being finalised. 
 
 
Dr Andrew Hindle, CEO of Portland Gas commented: 
 
 
"Following discharge of the pre-start planning conditions, we are pleased to be 
able to start construction whilst continuing to seek full funding for the 
Portland Project. This is an exciting milestone in the development of what will 
be the largest gas storage facility onshore UK." 
 
 
"Hydrock has already proved themselves on the Portland project through the 
successful completion of a ground investigation programme and design of the 
ground engineering works on the Portland site in 2007 and is the preferred 
contractor to undertake the initial site construction work. Hydrock has an 
excellent reputation and has been placed in the top 100 companies to work for by 
the Sunday Times for the past three years." 
 
 
Commenting on the agreement with Portland Gas, Managing Director of Hydrock, 
Brian McConnell said: 
 
 
"We recognise the importance of the Portland Project to securing energy supplies 
to the UK for the future and look forward to working with Portland Gas to ensure 
its successful development." 
  For further information please contact: 
 
 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
| Portland Gas plc                                       | 020 8332 1200        | 
| Andrew Hindle, Chief Executive Officer                 |                      | 
| Craig Gouws, Chief Financial Officer                   |                      | 
|                                                        |                      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
| PR - Watershed                                         | 01308 420785         | 
| Sara Hudston                                           |                      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
|                                                        |                      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
| Investor Relations - Buchanan Communications           | 020 7466 5000        | 
| Ben Willey                                             |                      | 
|                                                        |                      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
| Nominated Advisor and Broker - Seymour Pierce          | 020 7107 8000        | 
| Jonathan WrightSarah Jacobs                            |                      | 
| Richard Redmayne                                       |                      | 
|                                                        |                      | 
+--------------------------------------------------------+----------------------+ 
 
 
 
 
Notes to Editors: 
 
 
Background on Portland Gas plc 
 
 
Portland Gas' business is focused on the development of two gas storage projects 
in the United Kingdom at Portland, Dorset and at Islandmagee, County Antrim, 
Northern Ireland. The two projects could between them provide over 10% of the 
total UK and Ireland peak daily demand in the latter part of the next decade. 
The Company is also developing new projects in mainland Europe initially 
focussing on Germany and Spain. The Company is one of only a few in Europe 
focused specifically on gas storage development, a sector with significant 
growth potential in Europe over the coming decades. 
 
 
Background on Hydrock 
 
 
Hydrock is a construction services group providing consultancy and specialist 
contracting services across a number of sectors including energy, regeneration, 
waste, development and mining and quarrying. 
 
 
The group's head office is at Almondsbury, near Bristol and has nine other 
offices throughout the UK. The Company has built a strong reputation for solving 
complex (and interesting) engineering problems from the ground up. Hydrock Group 
employs approximately 400 people and the highly prestigious "Sunday Times Best 
100 companies to work for Survey" has placed Hydrock amongst the top companies 
to work for in the UK for the fourth year running. 
 
 
Portland Project 
 
 
At 1000 million cubic metres ("mcm") or 35 billion cubic feet ("bcf") of working 
gas, it will be the largest onshore gas storage facility in the UK. Planning 
permission was granted by Dorset County Council in May 2008 and Pipeline 
Construction Authorisation was granted by the BERR (now known as the Department 
of Energy and Climate Change) in July 2008. The gas storage facility is designed 
to inject or withdraw gas at 20mcm per day. On peak demand days the withdrawal 
rate could be boosted to 30mcm per day. The current estimate of total 
development cost for the project is GBP456m. The project will use brine 
compensation technology and will not require cushion gas. 
 
 
Islandmagee Storage Project 
 
 
The proposed 500mcm (18bcf) facility will be the largest on the island of 
Ireland and make a significant contribution to the security of gas supplies. 
Portland Gas plc has a 65% interest in the project. Its partner in the project 
is a subsidiary of Northern Ireland Energy Holdings Limited, the owner of the 
Scotland to Northern Ireland gas pipeline. The facility is being designed to 
inject gas at 12mcm and withdraw gas at 22mcm per day. The cost of construction 
has been estimated at GBP229m, including cushion gas. A successful public 
exhibition was held on Islandmagee in June 2009 and work is continuing towards 
the submission of a planning application before the end of 2009. 
 
 
Further information is available on the Company's website www.portland-gas.com. 
 
This information is provided by RNS 
            The company news service from the London Stock Exchange 
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