The liquefied natural gas floating storage unit Armada LNG Mediterrana has achieved first LNG in Malta, operator Bumi Armada said on Tuesday.

The Malaysian floater contractor said the FSU, Bumi’s first project of this kind, started operations for project operator ElectroGas Malta (EGM) on 16 January.

The FSU will now be permanently moored to a jetty and deliver LNG on a continuous basis for the 18-year and two-month contract period. It will now serve the Delimara LNG regasification terminal.

The contract, signed in April 2015 with project partner EGM, was valued at approximately $300 million, Bumi said.

“When we first started the discussions on the Malta LNG project, many in the industry believed that Malta’s gas demand was not sufficiently substantial for the project to be economical. Together with EGM, we have proved that the project can make economic sense and be competitive,” Bumi’s chief executive Leon Harland said.

The FSU will receive, store and dispatch LNG will serve the Delimara onshore power station.

The project involves a floating storage unit and the regasification of an initial 55 million to 60 million cubic feet per day of gas.

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Bumi achieves first LNG in Malta