Greece's Metlen said on Wednesday it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Shell to cooperate on liquefied natural gas supply and trading.
Greek energy companies have been seeking deals to supply central and southern Europe with US-produced LNG as the US works to replace Russian gas in Europe.
Metlen, a London- and Athens-listed energy and metals group, said the agreement will allow it to secure and trade between 0.5 and one billion cubic metres of LNG annually from 2027 to 2031, with deliveries routed through Greece's Revithoussa and Alexandroupolis terminals.
The deal also envisages using the vertical gas corridor, a route to transport gas from Greece through central Europe and Ukraine, enabling access to additional European markets beyond Southeast Europe, as Greece aims to bolster its role as a gas transit country.
A consortium led by US oil major Chevron signed exclusive lease agreements earlier this month to search for natural gas off southern Greece, expanding US presence in the eastern Mediterranean.
Shell declined to provide further details.
(Reporting by Antonis Pothitos. Additional reporting by Stephanie Kelly. Editing by Jane Merriman and Mark Potter)
