A gas conversion port - the first of its kind in the world - was officially opened in the region yesterday.
The £40m Teesside GasPort, part of the Teesport facilities, converts and pipes gas into the UK gas grid and could help reduce household bills.
The Middlesbrough facility is predicted to be crucial in the coming years with global demand for liquefied natural gas expected to rise ten per cent annually until 2015.
The first LNG cargo was received last week.
GasPort is the world's first dockside "regasification" port - a process where LNG is revapourised to gas onboard ships - and the second operational LNG access point in the UK.
During a visit last week, it was hailed as world class by Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for the Department for Trade and Industry.
Yesterday, Texas-based Excelerate Energy, the company behind the venture, officially opened the facility, which took less than a year to construct.
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