Greek energy group METLEN has signed a binding five-year agreement with Shell Global LNG for six liquefied natural gas cargoes a year from 2027, turning an earlier memorandum into a firm supply contract for Greece and other European markets.
The annual volume is about 600 million cubic meters of natural gas, according to METLEN’s announcement and a filing listed by the Athens exchange. The cargoes will come mainly from Shell’s US LNG portfolio. METLEN said they may be sold in Greece or moved to other European markets, including through the Vertical Gas Corridor.
The companies did not disclose the contract’s financial value or identify the countries that will ultimately receive the gas.
What the METLEN-Shell LNG deal covers
The contract follows a memorandum the two companies signed in February. That earlier framework contemplated annual LNG trading of between 500 million and one billion cubic meters from 2027 through 2031. The binding agreement fixes the supply at about 600 million cubic meters a year, near the lower end of that range.
Panayotis Kanellopoulos, METLEN’s chief executive director for international energy supply and trading, said the partnership would diversify the company’s sources and give it more flexibility to serve customers in Greece and elsewhere in Europe. Tom Summers, Shell’s executive vice president for LNG marketing and trading, said the companies would also explore further cooperation.
METLEN is already part of Greece’s effort to become a strategic gateway for US LNG. The new contract is separate from a 20-year US LNG agreement announced in 2025 by Greek companies DEPA Commercial and Aktor with Venture Global.
Greece’s route into European gas markets
Greece can receive LNG at Revithoussa and at the floating terminal off Alexandroupolis, then send gas north through connected networks. METLEN arranged the first US LNG cargo for Bulgaria through Alexandroupolis in late 2025, demonstrating the cross-border route the new Shell supply could use.
A February 2026 capacity auction drew weak bookings for the Vertical Gas Corridor, showing that price, transport costs and market conditions still determine whether cargoes move beyond Greece.
The agreement arrives as Europe continues efforts to phase out Russian gas imports.
