EmiratesLNG is set to move forward on construction of the Middle East’s first land-based liquefied natural gas import facility after securing government approval for the project, according to a report.

The joint venture of United Arab Emirates (UAE) state-controlled International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) and Mubadala Petroleum intends to build the new terminal at the busy oil port of Fujairah but has yet to determine which company will be awarded the construction contract.

EmiratesLNG said it was working to ensure the timely completion of the project but gave no completion date or cost estimate. Front-end engineering and design has been carried out by France’s Technip.

“EmiratesLNG will seize this opportunity to establish itself as a key player in the Middle East within the global LNG market,” chief executive Ahmed Matar Al Mazrouei said in a statement cited by Reuters.

The venture stated the Abu Dhabi Executive Council had approved the project to build the large terminal, intended to accommodate the largest LNG carriers and supply the UAE with around 9 million tonnes of LNG per annum, with most of the gas destined for the power sector.

The UAE has exported LNG since the late 1970s but rapidly rising domestic demand and sluggish progress on raising its own production have made the Opec member a net importer of gas over the last five years.

A population and industrial boom during the last decade have increased the UAE’s reliance on imported gas to meet power demand, especially in summer when air conditioning use surges.

Dubai already imports LNG to ports in the Persian Gulf and the UAE gets a modest volume of Qatari gas by pipeline, which helps feed power and desalination plants at Fujairah.

Building an LNG import terminal outside the Strait of Hormuz reduces the risk that the UAE’s supplies could be affected by problems in the vital oil and gas shipping lane, which neighbouring Iran threatened to block last year.