Energy, Gas, Lithuania, Port, Transport

The vessel, as long as three football fields, was welcomed by hundreds of observers, reporters and numerous police forces. The vessel crossed the gate of Klaipeda Seaport before 9:00 a.m.

The welcoming speech on Monday will be said by Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, with participation of Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius, Estonian Prime Minister Taavi Roivas, Latvian Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma, Lithuanian Energy Minister Rokas Masiulis, US senators, foreign ambassadors, representatives of the European Commission and other guests.

The life welcoming ceremony will be available on the national LRT TV from 14:00.

The Independence is 294 metres in length, 46 metres in width and 47 metres in height. Her speed is 18 knots. A total of 25,000 tonnes of steel were used for her construction. The vessel has 4 LNG storage tanks of a total capacity of 170,000 cubic metres.