Norway exports 108.4 bcm of pipeline gas to Europe in 2015 -Gassco

OSLO, Jan 11 (Reuters) - Norway exported 108.4 billion cubic metres (bcm) of pipeline gas to Europe in 2015, a more than 7 percent rise of over 7 bcm from the previous year, final figures from gas system operator Gassco showed on Monday.

It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) was slightly less than preliminary data showed on Jan. 4, but still a record high, securing Norway's place as Western Europe's top gas supplier.

Germany was the top export destination for the Norwegian gas last year, with deliveries totalling 48.3 bcm, while Britain came the second with 28.9 bcm, data from Gassco showed.

Norway also exported 17.2 bcm to France and 14.1 bcm to Belgium.

While Norway exports gas to a receiving terminals in these four countries, some gas has been transited to other destinations, including Italy.

More than 30 percent of Norwegian gas exports passed through its key gas processing plant Kollsnes, which receives gas from the country's biggest gas field Troll.

Troll ramped up production last year after its operator Statoil (Xetra: 675213 - news) installed new compressors to help to pump out gas from the offshore field in the North Sea.

Gas export figures reported by Gassco do not include Norway's exports from its Arctic Snoehvit field, which is liquefied and exported by tankers.

Snohevit produced 5.1 billion cubic metres of natural gas during the first ten months of 2015, data from the Norwegian Petroleum Department showed.

Russia remains the largest gas supplier to the whole European Union, accounting for around a third of its gas needs, despite political tensions over Ukraine.

(Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis, editing by David Evans)