Natural Gas World - Latest News https://www.naturalgasworld.com/rss Tue, 19 Mar 2024 10:16:48 +0000 Natural Gas World News Feed http://www.vortexcms.com/ en CERAWEEK-Lower LNG prices should boost gas demand, executives say https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ceraweek-lower-lng-prices-should-enhance-gas-demand-executives-say-110255 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ceraweek-lower-lng-prices-should-enhance-gas-demand-executives-say-110255 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 09:48:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News World Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Security of Supply  - Liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices have fallen about a third over the past nine months, propping up demand, which should tighten the LNG market in the near-term, executives said on Monday at the CERAWeek energy conference.

LNG prices have tumbled as supplies have swelled. LNG for April delivery into northeast Asia was at $8.60 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) last week, its lowest since April 2021.

Executives from companies including Chevron and trading firm Trafigura estimated that the decline in prices will likely spur greater demand, while Wael Sawan, the CEO of Shell, said demand is already increasing as a result of reduced prices.

"It's a pretty trite thing to say, but low prices fix low prices," said Richard Holtum, global head of gas, power and renewables for trading firm Trafigura.

"Gas prices are so low here, it's a competitive advantage" he said.

Surging U.S. gas supplies and low prices have led companies to propose several new LNG export plants. The flurry of new proposals in turn prompted U.S. President Joe Biden's administration to pause its reviews of permits for the export plants, concerned so many new projects would undermine his pledge to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.

The permit review pause will undermine U.S. dominance in LNG exports, said Mike Sommers, president of industry trade group American Petroleum Institute, said on Monday.

“We're losing market share to other countries as a consequence of the LNG export pause," Sommers said.

Amos Hochstein, a White House energy advisor, defended the pause given the huge increase in U.S. gas exports since they began in 2016. The U.S. exported a record 8.6 million metric tons (MT) of the superchilled gas in December and 8.3 MT in January.

“We’re just going to take a look at what is the speed, while not affecting the existing projects,” Hochstein said.

The second half of the decade will lead to a 40 percent increase in global LNG output, said Trafigura's Holtum.

Gunvor Chairman Torbjörn Törnqvist, meanwhile, estimated LNG supply will jump by a third over the next five years. He said there is not currently any tightness in the market and that gas prices are likely to remain low given the abundance of supply.

Patrick Pouyanne, CEO of TotalEnergies, a leading exporter of US LNG, echoed expectations for a increase in supply in the later half of the decade.

"It will be very good for the buyers, good for the customers and we will have the next generation of demand," he said.

 

(Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar, Marianna Parraga, Georgina McCartney and Curtis Williams in Houston; Writing by Liz Hampton in Houston; Editing by David Gregorio)

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Transport may prove Arctic LNG-2’s Achilles heel [Gas in Transition] https://www.naturalgasworld.com/transport-may-prove-arctic-lng-2s-achilles-heel-gas-in-transition-110251 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/transport-may-prove-arctic-lng-2s-achilles-heel-gas-in-transition-110251 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 08:00:00 +0000 NGW News Alert Natural Gas & LNG News Europe Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) LNG Condensed Top Stories Premium Gas In Transition Articles March 2024 News By Country Russia According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, speaking in February, Russia will expand its LNG capacity to 110mn tonnes/year by 2030, up from today’s 30mn t/yr. It looks like a tall order.

Central to this expansion will be the Arctic cluster, where capacity will treble from 17.4mn t/yr to 60mn t/yr. The first step is to complete the three trains of the sanctioned Arctic LNG-2 project, which will add a capacity of 19.8mn t/yr.  

LNG capacity in the Baltic area (Portovaya 1.5mn t/yr and Vysotsk 0.66mn t/yr) will rise to 15.5mn t/yr, while capacity on Sakhalin Island will grow from 9.6mn t/yr to 15mn t/yr and from the Murmansk LNG cluster from zero to 20mn t/yr. The 20mn t/yr Murmansk LNG project, to be built by Russian gas producer Novatek, operator of both Yamal LNG and Arctic LNG-2, received priority approval from the Russian government in October and could begin construction this year.

Russia’s need to expand its LNG capacity is clear. The country has lost a huge portion of its European gas market as a result of its invasion of Ukraine (see figure 1)

According to estimates, Russian gas exports by pipeline to Europe fell to just 28.3bn m3 (21mn t/yr) in 2023, down from about 85.4bn m3 in 2022 and 169bn m3 in 2021. While it is ramping up supplies to China through the Power of Siberia pipeline and plans to build a second line, they will not compensate for the loss of European markets, nor provide the end-market flexibility of LNG.

LNG exports therefore look like the best means of boosting gas exports. The big question is whether such an expansion can be achieved under sanctions. Russia is not short on gas resources; its problems are instead political, technological and logistical.

 

Arctic LNG-2: state of play

Sanctions and the retreat of foreign partners have slowed development of Arctic LNG-2. Novatek has been forced to reorientate its supply chain to Chinese companies and reconfigure the trains under development. Nonetheless, Train 1 started production at the end of the 2023 at 50% capacity, although no cargoes have yet been exported.

Reports, backed by satellite imagery and ship tracking, also indicate that the final modules for the completion of Train 2 have been delivered. Assembly will take place at the Belokamenka yard before being floated out to location. Observers suggest this could take place this summer, although it is not clear that all of the requisite technology is in place. 

The completion of Train 3, scheduled for 2026, looks more problematic. The sanctions noose is tightening. 

Foreign shareholders in the project, France’s TotalEnergies (10%), China’s CNOOC (10%) and CNPC (10%) and a Japanese consortium of Mitsui and JOGMEC (10%), suspended participation in Arctic LNG-2 in December, following two new rounds of US sanctions issued in September and November. Further sanctions came in February. US sanctions now target the purchase and transport of Russian LNG. It is the latter which might prove Arctic LNG-2’s Achilles heel.

 

Specialist fleet

Arctic LNG-2’s northerly location in the Gulf of Ob means it depends on ice-class LNGCs to transport LNG at least to transhipment points where ship-to-ship transfers in warmer waters can be made for onward delivery. 

The Yamal LNG plant is also located in the Gulf of Ob. It is served by a fleet of 15 Arc7 vessels all built by South Korea’s Daewoo between 2016 and 2019, each with a capacity of 172,000 m3

Although these vessels can break ice, they are optimised for efficiency in open water and were designed to move westward into Europe in the winter and eastward along the Northern Sea Route (NSR) only in summer to Asia. They can take LNG to a transhipment point or further.

Arctic LNG-2 will use new Arc7 vessels. These vessels with 172,600-m3 capacity, are designed to allow year-round use of the NSR and for maximum speed through ice rather than open water efficiency – i.e. to serve as the crucial link to the transhipment points in Murmansk to the west and Kamchatka in the east. 

Their lack of efficient operation in open water means they are of little use to anyone except the Arctic LNG-2 partners.  

Yamal’s fleet of Arc7 vessels could be used for Arctic LNG-2, but there is reportedly understandable resistance to this from the project’s non-Russian shareholders (France’s TotalEnergies and China’s CNPC and Silk Road Fund), as they fear the vessels will fall foul of sanctions on the Arctic LNG-2 project and limit transport availability from Yamal LNG.

As a result, Arctic LNG-2 needs its new Arc7 vessels to come into operation to start regular shipments (see figure 2)

Five of the new Arc7 LNG vessels are under construction at Russia’s Zvezda shipyard. Three have been launched and are being internally outfitted. At least two are expected to come into operation this year. 

Although the first ice-class LNGCs to be built in Russia, Zvezda is more of an assembly operation. The yard relies on South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) for the main hulls. They also depend on French company GTT’s membrane containment system and propulsion systems provided by US company General Electric. Both GTT and General Electric exited Russia last year and SHI has suspended work on the hulls, having delivered only five.

As a result, it is uncertain whether the shipyard will be able to complete all five ships, while additional hulls will likely have to be sourced from Chinese shipyards.

In total 15 Arc7 LNGCs were to be built at Zvezda. The current situation suggests that at best only two or three will be able to operate this year, an insufficient number to serve even Train 1, if it can operate at 100% capacity. As a result, even if Novatek is successful in completing the liquefaction trains, access to sufficient ice-class transport looks set to remain a problem for some years.  

 

Other Arc7s hit by sanctions complications

There are other new design Arc7 ships available or soon to be available built for use at Arctic LNG-2. South Korean shipyard Hanwha Ocean – formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding – has completed three new Arc7 LNGCs, which are ready for service. These were originally ordered by Russia’s Sovcomflot, but payment issues resulted in Hanwha completing the ships on its own balance sheet. Ownership of one of the ships was reported by maritime media gCaptain to have passed to a Dubai-based entity in February before being passed back to Hanwha soon afterwards.  

Japan’s Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) also has three Arc7 LNGCs under construction with Hanwha, the first of which has already undergone sea trials. However, the US sanctions announced in February mean that it can no longer charter the ships to Arctic LNG-2. Mitsui OSK says it needs to sell the ships as a result, but the only real customer is Arctic LNG-2, to which sanctions prevent a sale. 

Hanwha Ocean is in the same position. It can neither sell nor charter the vessels directly for use on the project without falling foul of sanctions, hence the apparent search for a third-party owner. This is becoming increasingly difficult.

The sanctions announced in February directly sanction the Zvezda shipbuilding complex, SMART LNG, a Russia-based joint venture to lease new Arc7 LNGCs, Novatek Murmansk, the civil construction company operating the Belokamenka shipyard, as well as three Cyprus-based shipping companies, Azoria, Elixon and Glorina, all of which have been incorporated to purchase Arc7 LNGCs for Arctic LNG-2 and all of which have Sovcomflot as their global ultimate parent, according to the US government.

In addition, the two 361,600-m3 floating storage units at the Murmansk and Kamchatka transhipment points were added to the US sanctions list in September.

In addition to struggling to find the ships to transport the LNG, Novatek has had to spend far more on the project than it wanted, owing to the delays and the need to build new supply chains with Chinese companies. Moreover, Novak’s intended expansion of Russia’s LNG sector relies not just on Arctic LNG-2 but on multiple new projects, such as Murmansk LNG, which will almost certainly fall foul of sanctions from the outset and benefit much less, if at all, from the delivery of western LNG technology. 

This will increase Russia’s dependence on China further, but both countries still have technological gaps in terms of constructing full LNG supply chains. 

The UK has banned imports of Russian LNG, and the European Commission has said it wants to end all imports of Russian gas, whether by pipeline or as LNG, by 2027. Further US sanctions are likely as Washington has made Arctic LNG-2 in particular, and the development of Russia’s energy complex in general a target. Meanwhile, even if Hanwha and MOL can resolve their issues with stranded Arc7 vessels, they are unlikely to risk a repeat of the experience when it comes to new Russian LNG projects.

 

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CERAWEEK-Big Oil executives push back against calls for fast energy transition https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ceraweek-big-oil-executives-push-back-against-demand-for-fast-energy-transition-110252 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ceraweek-big-oil-executives-push-back-against-demand-for-fast-energy-transition-110252 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 07:30:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News World Americas Energy Transition  - Top oil executives took to the stage of a major energy conference on Monday to vocally oppose calls for a quick move away from fossil fuels, saying society would pay a steep cost to replace oil and gas.

Big oil companies including BP and Equinor have written down renewable energy projects and others have been forced to push back their greenhouse gas reduction targets due to greater uncertainties with the transition to clean fuels.

That and unexpected strong demand for oil has stiffened the industry's opposition to government and activist demands to phase out fossil fuel development. Policymakers also have shifted their focus to energy supply security and affordability since Russia invaded Ukraine and during the latest conflict in the Middle East.

"We should abandon the fantasy of phasing out oil and gas, and instead invest in them adequately" to reflect demand, Amin Nasser, CEO of Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil producer, said to applause.

Despite the growth of electric vehicles, solar and wind power, oil demand this year will reach a new record of 104 million barrels per day this year, Nasser said.

Alternative energy has yet to show it can displace hydrocarbons at current requirements or prices, Nasser added. He rejected the International Energy Agency forecast of peak oil demand in 2030.

Other oil CEOs echoed his view, with Shell's Wael Sawan pointing to government bureaucracy in Europe as slowing needed development. Petrobras CEO Jean Paul Prates said caution should overrule haste. Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods also said regulations governing clean fuels have still not been resolved.

"If we rush or if things go the wrong way, we’ll have a crisis that we will never forget,” said Prates.

"You're hearing some very pragmatic views up here," said Meg O'Neill, CEO of Woodside Energy, who rejected what she called simplistic views that the transition to cleaner fuels can "happen at an unrealistic pace."

Public debate over the transition and its cost has become increasingly divisive in many countries.

"It has become emotional. And when things are emotional, it becomes more difficult to have a pragmatic conversation," O'Neill said.

It could take 20 to 40 years to build the market for and test some new clean-fuel technologies, O'Neill said.

U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm pushed back at oil industry views on renewable fuels.

"That is one opinion," she said of Nasser's prediction of continuing long-term demand for fossil fuels. "There have been other studies that suggest the opposite that oil and gas demand and fossil demand will peak by 2030."

She called the transition to clean fuels "an undeniable, inevitable and necessary realignment of the world's energy system." She added that the world will need fossil fuels well into the future, and said technologies that remove carbon "are ways that we can keep the lights on and continue to press for clean energy solutions."

Exxon's Woods, whose company spent $4.9 billion on a carbon sequestration company, raised concerns about building a business around hydrogen and carbon capture and storage.

He said in remarks at the conference he is not confident that carbon capture and storage will "necessarily come to the right solution" because of its current high costs and lack of market incentives.

On the use of hydrogen as a fuel, "the challenge has been translating the legislation of the IRA (Inflation Reduction Act) into regulation," Woods said.

"There isn't a lot of incentives" to drive low-carbon hydrogen fuel projects, he said, referring to hydrogen derived from natural-gas.

(Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar, Marianna Parraga and Sabrina Valle in Houston; writing by Gary McWilliams; Editing by David Gregorio)

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Sri Lanka's Hambantota Port welcomes 1st LNG-powered vessel https://www.naturalgasworld.com/sri-lankas-hambantota-port-welcomes-1st-lng-powered-vessel-110248 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/sri-lankas-hambantota-port-welcomes-1st-lng-powered-vessel-110248 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 05:45:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Gas for Transport News By Country Sri Lanka Sri Lanka's Hambantota International Port (HIP) marked a milestone in the first week of March by welcoming the first LNG-powered vessel, it announced on March 18.

The vessel, NYK's Jasmine Leader, is one of the world's largest pure car and truck carriers (PCTC). It arrived at the port to unload construction machinery and equipment. The transshipment cargo is destined for Dammam and Maldives.

Japanese shipping giant NYK has ambitious plans to enhance its fleet sustainability. Under the Sail Green brand, NYK aims to procure a total of 20 new LNG-fueled PCTCs by 2028. This initiative underscores the company's commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in transportation and supporting eco-friendly supply chains for its customers.

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Morgan Stanley expects Brent to climb to $90/bbl by summer 2024 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/morgan-stanley-expects-brent-to-rise-to-90/bbl-by-summer-2024-110246 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/morgan-stanley-expects-brent-to-rise-to-90/bbl-by-summer-2024-110246 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 04:51:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News World Security of Supply  - Morgan Stanley raised its Brent oil price forecasts by $10 per barrel to $90 for the third-quarter of 2024, citing tighter supply and demand balances on OPEC+ commitment and Russia's oil production curtailments after recent drone attacks on its refineries.

Morgan Stanley lowered its supply forecast for OPEC and Russia by 0.2-0.3 million barrel per day (bpd) for 2Q/3Q as it sees a modest deficit in second quarter, increasing to a larger deficit in the third quarter.

The bank also hiked its first-quarter Brent price outlook to $85 per barrel from $82.5, second-quarter forecast to $87.5 from $82.5 and for the fourth quarter it sees prices at $85 versus $80 previously.

Oil benchmark Brent hovered just under the $86 a barrel mark on Monday. Prices have been supported as Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russian oil infrastructure since the start of the year, hitting numerous large oil refineries in an attempt to cripple Russia's military. O/R

"These attacks probably mean that some oil production may still need to be reduced. As a result of this, combined with the OPEC+ commitment, we have reduced our oil production forecast for Russia for 2Q and 3Q by ~0.2 million bpd as well."

Morgan Stanley is also of the view that instead of a geopolitical risk premium, there is actually still a small discount in the Brent price for the risk that OPEC cohesion deteriorates.

"Every month that OPEC discipline remains in-place, Brent flat price will likely continue to catch up with where inventories and time spreads already are."

OPEC+ members led by Saudi Arabia and Russia earlier this month agreed to extend voluntary oil output cuts of 2.2 million bpd into the second quarter.

Morgan Stanley still expects oil demand to grow at 1.5 million bpd this year, slightly above historical trend growth, driven by jet fuel and petchem, and regionally by China and India.

 

(Reporting by Daksh Grover, Swati Verma and Sherin Elizabeth Varghese in Bengaluru)

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Australian regulator expects lower household power bills from July https://www.naturalgasworld.com/australian-regulator-estimates-lower-household-power-bills-from-july-110244 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/australian-regulator-estimates-lower-household-power-bills-from-july-110244 Tue, 19 Mar 2024 03:42:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Security of Supply News By Country Australia  - The majority of Australian homes and businesses could enjoy lower power bills from July after two years of soaring prices, the country's energy regulator said on Tuesday, bringing relief to families battling rising living costs amid high inflation.

The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) released its draft decision on the default market offer - the maximum price energy retailers can charge customers - that it said would still allow a retailer to recover costs and make a profit.

AER expects a 0.4-7.1% fall in prices for most residential customers and 0.3-9.7% for small businesses, though some could face modest increases depending on their region.

Power prices have spiked in Australia over the past two years in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and more frequent outages at coal-fired power stations.

Wholesale electricity markets have stabilised since their extreme peaks of 2022, AER Chair Clare Savage said in a statement, adding a range of costs were factored into the draft determination including network, environmental and retail costs.

"We know that economic conditions have put pressure on many Australians and the increases in electricity prices over the last two years has made energy less affordable for many households. In light of this, the AER has, in this decision, placed increased weight on protecting consumers," Savage said.

It is estimated that price changes for all residential and small business customers on standard plans will be less than the rate of inflation, AER said.

Australian consumer price inflation slowed to a two-year low in the fourth quarter to 4.1% - well below the peak of 7.8% touched in December 2022 - but it remained above the central bank's annual inflation target band of 2-3%.

The draft determination, open to public consultation and stakeholder feedback, sets out the approach the AER intends to take to determine the final default market offer price, which will be released in May.

 

(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Stephen Coates)

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Gunvor contemplates offtake from Texas LNG https://www.naturalgasworld.com/gunvor-contemplates-offtake-from-texas-lng-110242 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/gunvor-contemplates-offtake-from-texas-lng-110242 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 17:41:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Americas Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Corporate Contracts and tenders News By Country United States Global commodity trader Gunvor has signed a heads of agreement with Texas LNG, a 4mn tonnes/year liquefaction facility under development in Brownsville, Texas, contemplating the long-term sale and purchase of 500,000 tonnes/year of LNG, Texas LNG said March 18.

“With the previously announced commencement of the execution phase of the project financing process, this agreement aligns with our plan to take a final investment decision on Texas LNG this year,” Texas LNG co-president Vlad Bluzer said.

Texas LNG in January reached a tolling agreement with gas producer EQT for 500,000 tonnes/year of natural gas liquefaction and has recently entered into partnerships with Baker Hughes for gas compression technology, ABB for core automation and electrical equipment and Gulf LNG Tugs of Texas for tugboats to support operations at the terminal.

Texas LNG expects to achieve financial close and begin construction this year, and is targeting commercial operations in 2028.

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New Fortress Energy sells Puerto Rico power plants https://www.naturalgasworld.com/new-fortress-energy-sells-puerto-rico-power-plants-110240 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/new-fortress-energy-sells-puerto-rico-power-plants-110240 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 15:57:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Americas Corporate Investments News By Country United States New Fortress Energy (NFE) said March 18 it had sold two gas-fired power plants in Puerto Rico to the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) for $373mn.

The plants, in San Juan and Palo Seco, were developed in 2023 on behalf of the US Army Corps of Engineers in order to provide emergency power and to stabilise the Puerto Rico power grid. Terms of the agreement with the Corps contemplated their eventual transfer to PREPA.

In addition to the sale of the power plants, NFE said after a competitive bidding process it had been awarded and had entered into a new island-wide contract with PREPA to supply 80 TBtu of gas to the two power plants for up to four years. The expanded volumes under the contract will also enable the conversion of other plants in Puerto Rico from diesel to natural gas.

“We entered the Puerto Rico market in 2017 based on the island’s emergency need for natural gas and power,” NFE CEO Wes Edens said. “The transactions announced today mark a significant milestone in our continued commitment to Puerto Rico’s energy security and cost reduction efforts while significantly increasing our business in the region.”

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Asian spot LNG prices inch up on emerging Chinese demand https://www.naturalgasworld.com/asian-spot-lng-prices-inch-higher-on-emerging-chinese-demand-110238 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/asian-spot-lng-prices-inch-higher-on-emerging-chinese-demand-110238 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 14:05:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)  - Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices inched up on Friday after remaining flat this week, amid concerns over some cargo delays due to bad weather in Australia and as Asian buyers embraced the low prices.

The average LNG price for April delivery into north-east Asia LNG-AS, which expires on Friday, remained unchanged from last week at $8.60 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), a level last seen in late April 2021, industry sources estimated.

However, the price for May delivery jumped to $9/mmBtu, the sources added.

"Market players continue to eye firm Asian demand for Atlantic supply, with the inter-basin arbitrage (cargo diversion from one market to another) for U.S. loadings holding open in recent days," said Samuel Good, head of LNG pricing at commodity pricing agency Argus.

"With European receipts already slowing so far this month, the incentive for inter-basin flows could weigh on European LNG supply further in the coming weeks," he said, adding that Asia LNG futures also rose sharply, keeping pace with Europe.

Good and other trading sources said prices received some support after an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.8 hit eastern Japan early on Friday, but the absence of a tsunami warning quelled concerns.

The market is also watching closely how a tropical cyclone hitting Australia will affect northwest Australian LNG terminals.

Trading sources said the bad weather was affecting traffic at Gorgon LNG facility and expected some cargo delays but said it wouldn't have a major impact.

In Europe, gas prices are testing an upside trend, although inventories are well filled for the time of the year, and the end of the winter season is around the corner, said Hans Van Cleef, chief energy economist at PZ - Energy Research & Strategy.

He said that while more pressure on prices could be expected in the coming weeks and months as the filling season is starting, "It clearly seems that investors are not confident of further price declines in the near future."

S&P Global Commodity Insights assessed its daily North West Europe LNG Marker (NWM) price benchmark for cargoes delivered in April on an ex-ship (DES) basis at $7.881/mmBtu on March 14, a $0.40/mmBtu discount to the April gas price at the Dutch TTF hub.

Argus assessed the price at $7.950/mmBtu, while Spark Commodities assessed it at $7.902/mmBtu.

Elsewhere in Europe, the 174,000 cubic meters Energos Force FSRU has arrived at Stade, Germany, where it will take its place as the country's fifth LNG import facility, said Robert Songer, LNG analyst at data intelligence firm ICIS.

In the United States, U.S. natural gas futures rebounded from an early two-week low to gain about 8% on Thursday after a weekly report showed a larger-than-expected storage withdrawal last week.

Spot LNG freight rates were steady this week, with Atlantic rates estimated at $50,250/day on Friday, and Pacific rates at $50,750/day, said Qasim Afghan, an analyst at Spark Commodities.

 

(Reporting by Marwa Rashad; Editing by Devika Syamnath)

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LNG developer Tellurian to explore sale among other options, CEO steps down https://www.naturalgasworld.com/lng-company-tellurian-to-explore-sale-among-other-options-ceo-steps-down-110236 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/lng-company-tellurian-to-explore-sale-among-other-options-ceo-steps-down-110236 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 12:46:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News Americas Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Corporate News By Country United States  - Tellurian said on Monday it was looking at all options, including a potential sale, and that CEO Octavio Simoes had stepped down from his role, amid the liquefied natural gas developer's efforts to keep its Driftwood export project alive.

The company earlier this year had hired Lazard to explore a sale of its Haynesville upstream business in East Texas and Louisiana as part of efforts to raise capital for the Driftwood project.

Lazard will now also focus on alternative debt and equity financing, the sale of equity interests in Driftwood or Tellurian, a potential sale of the company, and assisting in securing commercial partners, Tellurian said on Monday.

Simoes, who resigned on March 15, has transitioned to an advisory role and will report to the company's president. He will retire in June. The company had previously said it would not renew or extend his employment term beyond June 5.

Samik Mukherjee, executive vice president of Driftwood Assets, has been appointed as president of Tellurian Investments.

He will be in charge of development of all Tellurian’s assets, including upstream, Driftwood LNG and pipeline.

The change is the latest top level reshuffle at Tellurian after it ousted chairman and co-founder Charif Souki late last year.

The company said it could sell up to $366.1 million shares from time to time through distribution agency Virtu Americas.

(Reporting by Mrinalika Roy and Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Sriraj Kalluvila)

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ADNOC signs 15-year LNG HoA with Germany's SEFE https://www.naturalgasworld.com/adnoc-signs-15-year-lng-hoa-with-germanys-sefe-110233 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/adnoc-signs-15-year-lng-hoa-with-germanys-sefe-110233 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 11:30:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Europe Middle East Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Security of Supply Corporate News By Country Germany United Arab Emirates The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has signed a 15-year heads of agreement with SEFE Marketing & Trading Singapore, a subsidiary of Germany’s SEFE, for the delivery of 1mn tonnes/year of LNG, it announced on March 18. 

The LNG will primarily be sourced from ADNOC’s Ruwais LNG project, currently under development in Al Ruwais Industrial City, Abu Dhabi. This agreement follows a similar 15-year LNG supply deal with China’s ENN signed in December last year. 

Deliveries under the agreement are expected to commence in 2028, coinciding with the start of commercial operations at the Ruwais LNG project.

“Gas accounts for almost a quarter of Germany’s primary energy use, and we look forward to supporting its efforts to diversify its energy sources and enhance its energy security," Fatema Al Nuaimi, executive vice president of downstream business management at ADNOC, said. 

This agreement further solidifies ADNOC's position as a key LNG supplier to global markets, building upon the company's successful delivery of the first LNG cargo from the Middle East to Germany in 2023.

“This LNG supply agreement for the Ruwais LNG project, set to be one of the lowest-carbon intensity LNG projects in the world, marks the start of a new chapter. We aim to further build on our existing relationship and explore joint low-carbon energy developments," said Frederic Barnaud, CEO of SEFE Marketing & Trading. 

Upon completion, the project will feature two LNG liquefaction trains with a capacity of 4.8mn tonnes/year each, totalling 9.6mn tonnes/year. This expansion is expected to more than double ADNOC's LNG production capacity, increasing it from 6mn tonnes/year to approximately 15mn tonnes/year.

Earlier this month, ADNOC announced the issuance of a Limited Notice to Proceed (LNTP) for early engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) activities to a consortium led by France's Technip Energies for the Ruwais LNG project. 

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Chinese LNG imports up 15% in February https://www.naturalgasworld.com/chinese-lng-imports-up-15-in-february-110231 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/chinese-lng-imports-up-15-in-february-110231 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 11:00:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) News By Country China Chinese LNG imports reached 5.95mn tonnes in February, representing an increase of 15.2% compared with the same period last year, according to data published by the customs department on March 18.

In the first two months of 2024, LNG imports totalled 13.2mn tonnes, up 19.3% year/year. In addition to LNG, China also reported a significant uptick in pipeline gas imports last month.

Imports via pipelines surged to 4.66mn tonnes, up 35.1% year/year. Over the January-February period, total pipeline gas imports amounted to 8.9mn tonnes, up 30.7% year/year.

 

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Australia Pacific LNG secures new gas sales agreements https://www.naturalgasworld.com/australia-pacific-lng-secures-new-gas-sale-agreements-110226 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/australia-pacific-lng-secures-new-gas-sale-agreements-110226 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 09:34:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Security of Supply Corporate CBM News By Country Australia Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG), a joint venture comprised of Origin, ConocoPhillips, and China's Sinopec, has signed two gas sale agreements, it said on March 15. These agreements, reached with Origin and Shell Energy, further bolster APLNG's commitment to supplying Australia's domestic gas market.

Under the terms of the agreements, APLNG will supply a combined total of 11.2 petajoules of natural gas to Origin and Shell Energy. 

With these latest agreements, APLNG's contribution to the domestic market for the 2024 calendar year exceeds 150 petajoules. This completes its expression of interest (EOI) process offering an additional 70 petajoules of gas to the east coast domestic market for supply between 1 April to 31 December 2024, APLNG stated.

The EOI process was undertaken in compliance with APLNG’s commitments under the federal government’s heads of agreement and gas market Code of Conduct.

APLNG stands as Australia's largest producer of coalbed methane (CBM), contributing significantly to Queensland's domestic gas market. Moreover, APLNG processes CBM into LNG for export purposes.

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Indian LNG imports up 33% in February https://www.naturalgasworld.com/indian-lng-imports-up-33-in-february-110224 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/indian-lng-imports-up-33-in-february-110224 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 08:11:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) News By Country India Indian LNG imports in February were 2.45bn m3 (approximately 1.8mn tonnes), up 33.3% year/year, according to the provisional data published by the country's oil and gas ministry's Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) on March 16.

For the 11 months of the current fiscal year, which commenced on April 1, 2023 (FY2024), imports were 27.93bn m3, up 17.6% year/year.

In the fiscal year that concluded on March 31, 2023 (FY2023), India's LNG imports amounted to 26.65bn m3, reflecting a decline of 14.1% in comparison to the preceding year. 

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From the editor: Where next? Gas demand projections diverge hugely [Gas in Transition] https://www.naturalgasworld.com/where-next-gas-demand-projections-diverge-hugely-110215 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/where-next-gas-demand-projections-diverge-hugely-110215 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 08:00:00 +0000 NGW News Alert Natural Gas & LNG News World Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Top Stories Editorial Gas In Transition Articles March 2024 The Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) released its Global Gas Outlook 2050 in March, forecasting that global natural gas demand will rise from 4,015bn m3 in 2022 to 5,360bn m3 in 2050, an increase of 34%. LNG use and trade see particularly strong growth, more than doubling to reach 1,110bn m3 in 2050, making up 64% of the traded gas market.

This stands in stark contrast to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) 2023 World Energy Outlook, which, based on current policies, foresees a peak in global gas demand by 2030 and then a limited decline, with gas consumption still a major part of the energy mix in 2050 at 4,173bn m3, but more than one fifth lower than the GECF projection. 

However, the IEA’s assumption is that policy globally becomes steadily more ambitious in terms of limiting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, increasing the downward curve of gas demand already evident by the policies in place in 2023. In a world in which the IEA’s net zero by 2050 outcome is achieved, gas demand falls to just 919bn m3 in 2050, less than 20% of that forecast by the GECF.

That is a big difference.  

Yet both use the same underlying assumptions – the medium variant of UN projections on population growth and 2.6% annual GDP growth on average for the world economy. So how do they arrive at such different outcomes?

One of the fundamental differences between the two is their view on primary energy demand. In a world in which the global population is expected to increase from 8.0bn in 2022 to 9.7bn in 2050, primary energy demand for the GECF rises by 20%, while in the IEA’s net zero scenario it contracts by an average 0.9% a year through 2050, owing to energy efficiency gains and electrification. 

Obviously, both cannot be right. Both could, of course, be wrong. 

The IEA’s net zero scenario, which strictly speaking is not a forecast, supposes a step change in the rate of energy efficiency improvement, which will be hard to realise to a sufficient degree in the context of increased population growth, rising incomes and continuing urbanisation.

 

Policy strengthening

If the IEA’s pathway assumes over ambitious energy efficiency gains, the GECF forecast appears not to take sufficient account of more stringent climate policies. Europe, which has become a key centre of LNG demand as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, is the prime example.

In February, the European Commission presented a recommendation that the bloc should set a 2040 target of a 90% reduction in GHG emissions compared with 1990, a significant increase from the 55% target set for 2030. 

The recommendation is based on advice given by the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change. Its report,Scientific advice for the determination of an EU-wide 2040 climate target and GHG budget for 2030-2050, published last year, outlines multiple scenarios by which the target could be achieved. But all assume a substantial reduction in gas use and imports, including a complete phase out of coal-fired generation by 2030 and the phase out of all unabated gas-fired generation by 2040.

This is far from the GECF’s view of how gas demand will evolve in the EU. It does recognise severe downward pressure as a result of existing policies – the EU’s Green Deal, Fit-for-55 package and the REPowerEU plan – but does not appear to take into account the much deeper level of decarbonisation set to be realised by 2040, if the Commission’s proposed new target is adopted and acted upon. 

The Advisory Board assessed 36 scenarios, which show natural gas accounting for less than 11% of electricity generation in 2030 at most, while in some scenarios it falls to 1% or below. By 2040, gas’s share of power generation is 6% or less in all scenarios. It falls to between 2-4% in what the Board describes as ‘iconic pathways’ and less than 1% in 12 of the scenarios. Scenarios that use higher amounts of gas tend to have a greater reliance on carbon removals. 

In its demand-side focus scenario, natural gas use falls steadily until 2035, after which it remains at just over 2% of generation until 2050. In its high renewable energy pathway, gas-fired generation declines continuously after 2025 to 0.1% by 2050. In its mixed-options scenario, gas use falls sharply until 2030 but then rises as a result of carbon capture and storage accompanied by a prioritisation of carbon removals from land rather than the use of bioenergy.

 

Political drift

It is uncertain how the Commission’s proposal will fare, particularly given a political shift to the right across Europe to parties hostile to the current trajectory of EU climate policy. This is likely to be manifest in a change in the political composition of the European Parliament in elections this June. 

The balance of power will most likely still be held by the conservative Europe People's Party (EPP) Grouping, which is also likely to remain the largest single group. The EPP has endorsed the current Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, whose home party, Germany’s Christian Democratic Union, is part of the EPP, for a second term, suggesting she will continue in the position after June.

The rightward shift in European politics may moderate the Commission’s environmental push, but no major reversal is likely. The Commission is unlikely to veer too far from the scientific advice, which is for a 90-95% reduction in GHG emissions by 2040. 

That means that, in all likelihood, a target of 90% or close to it will be set for 2040. It will then be up to the member states to formulate national plans to achieve the target. Having just overhauled major elements of its economic and environmental legislation to come into line with the Fit-for-55 package, the EU will also once again have to come up with policies, sub-targets and strategies which move the bloc towards the set goal for 2040.

 

Can deep decarbonisation be achieved?

A 90% reduction in GHG emissions by 2040 is hugely ambitious. It cannot but rely on near total decarbonisation of the power sector, and will have to penetrate much further into harder-to-abate sectors of the economy such as transport, buildings and industry. 

The GCEF forecast appears to assume that such a high target will not be fully achieved, and that there are elements of gas demand growth, for example in transport and blue hydrogen production, which will partially offset the decline in gas use in other areas. 

 

Electrification is the primary pathway

The energy transition is fundamentally reliant on much more widespread electrification, which itself delivers a big chunk of the IEA’s energy efficiency gains, and which is why near total decarbonisation of the power sector is an absolute necessity. 

It is also one of the more achievable elements of the energy transition. Solar power deployment is racing ahead, breaking a new record in Europe last year and there is every sign that it will continue to add more than 50 GW of new capacity a year. Wind deployment is lagging targets by a considerable margin, but also hit record deployment last year as permitting speed, auctions and the project pipeline all steadily gain momentum. The sector will be aided by EU initiatives such as the Wind Power Package. 

There also appears to be a resurgence of interest in the nuclear sector, particularly in eastern Europe where both the Czech Republic and Poland are firming up new construction plans. In Poland’s case these would be the country’s first reactors. It has chosen to build Small Modular Reactors, despite their untested nature, based on the nuclear industry’s fanciful cost projections.

The power sector and electrification are both the key to the energy transition and the easiest challenges to overcome on an affordable basis, owing to the low cost of the primary renewable energy technologies – wind, solar and hydro. Nuclear tends to overrun on time and cost, but nonetheless results in long-life generation assets. 

Pushing decarbonisation further into the economy will be expensive and exacerbate some of the issues highlighted by the support for the far right in Europe. It will cut both ways for gas. CCS in the power sector adds a cost addition to a fuel which is already viewed as expensive even if prices have now fallen back to levels before the Ukraine war. However, blue hydrogen production looks economically viable compared with green hydrogen pathways, despite the cost of CCS. 

The expansion of gas use in long distance transport, both marine and on land, also looks like a source of demand growth, but only a transitory one. The EU’s 2040 target has major implications, it is still only a staging post to 2050, when the achievement of a net zero carbon economy – if realised – means gas use in the EU at least at the minimal levels forecast by the IEA.

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ADX's Welchau-1 well discovers condensate rich gas in Austria https://www.naturalgasworld.com/adxs-welchau-1-well-discovers-condensate-rich-gas-in-austria-110221 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/adxs-welchau-1-well-discovers-condensate-rich-gas-in-austria-110221 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 07:29:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Europe Corporate News By Country Austria Australia's ADX Energy on March 18 announced it had encountered a liquids-rich gas column at the Welchau-1 well, situated within the ADX-AT-II exploration license area in Austria.

The Welchau-1 well encountered a 115-meter column of liquids-rich gas within the primary target Steinalm formation, spanning depths from 1,452 meters to 1,567 meters measured depth (MD). 

“The Welchau gas discovery has the potential to yield an exceptional gas resource for ADX, its partner MCF and the Republic of Austria,” said ADX executive chairman Ian Tchacos.

The Welchau-1 well is positioned to target the mid-Triassic age Steinalm formation, which has previously shown promising gas reserves in the nearby Molln-1 well, ADX said. The expected total drill depth is between 1500 metres to 1900 metres measured depth (MD). The main target depth is between 1100 metres and 1800 metres measured depth.

ADX Energy has entered into an agreement with MCF Energy to co-fund 50% of the Welchau-1 well costs, up to a cap of 5.1mn. In return, MCF Energy will earn a 25% economic interest in the Welchau investment area, which is part of ADX's ADX-AT-II license in Upper Austria. Upon fulfilling its funding obligations, MCF Energy's stake will stand at 25%, while ADX Energy will retain a 75% interest in the area.

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Ukraine has no plan to extend Russian gas transit deal https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ukraine-has-no-plan-to-extend-russian-gas-transit-pact-110219 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/ukraine-has-no-plan-to-extend-russian-gas-transit-pact-110219 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 06:00:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News Europe Security of Supply Political News By Country EU Russia Ukraine  - Ukraine said on Sunday it does not plan to prolong a five-year deal with Russia's Gazprom GAZP.MM on the transit of Russian gas to Europe or to sign another one.

Despite Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russian gas is still being transported across the country to Europe, where countries are working to replace fuel originating in Russia with alternative supplies and renewable energy.

Under an agreement agreed between Moscow and Kyiv in 2019, Russia pays Ukraine to export gas to Europe via its pipeline network. The deal expires at the end of December 2024.

"I can confirm that we have no plans to enter into any additional agreements or extend this (current) agreement," Ukrainian energy minister German Galushchenko said.

A stress test last year of Ukraine's gas transmission system and underground gas storage facilities proved that its gas system "can function without transit", he said in a statement.

Having enough pressurised gas in the pipelines is a prerequisite for guaranteeing gas supplies and the stress test was to ensure that Ukrainian consumers would still receive the fuel if there was no longer any flowing from Russia to Europe.

Moscow has said that Russia would use alternative routes and sea-borne liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the event that Ukraine did not extend the pipeline deal.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak was quoted as saying in January that Moscow was ready to hold talks with the European Union on natural gas supplies.

 

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Alexander Smith)

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Venture Global LNG to buy fleet of vessels https://www.naturalgasworld.com/venture-global-lng-to-purchase-fleet-of-vessels-110217 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/venture-global-lng-to-purchase-fleet-of-vessels-110217 Mon, 18 Mar 2024 03:50:00 +0000 Complimentary Natural Gas & LNG News Americas Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Corporate News By Country United States  - Venture Global LNG said on Sunday it would acquire a fleet of nine liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport vessels, expanding its ability to sell and ship its own cargoes.

Venture Global has exported hundreds of cargoes since it started liquefying gas for export in 2022 from the first of its three planned facilities in Louisiana. The vessels it used were owned by other companies and leased.

The nine vessels in Venture Global's future fleet will be built in South Korea with the first to be delivered later this year, the Arlington, Virginia-based company said.

The company has shipped more than 250 cargoes under its own account from the first plant, called Calcasieu Pass, sparking complaints from big-name energy companies holding long-term contracts that the sales should have been made available to them.

Venture Global says despite the shipments, the Calcasieu Pass plant has yet to start full commercial operations due to equipment malfunctions. Its contracts allow it to decide when the plant is fully operational.

The company hopes to complete the commissioning of the plant by the end of the year, CEO Mike Sabel told reporters gathered at Venture Global's Houston offices on Sunday. Repairs were going well, he said.

The plant does not have redundant power systems and the potential for outages has kept it from moving to commercial operation, he said.

But customers including BP BP.L, Shell SHEL.L, Edison EDNn.MI, Repsol REP.MC, Galp Energia GALP.LS, Unipec and Orlen PKN.WA say they have lost billions of dollars in revenue. They have initiated arbitration proceedings against Venture Global and have pressed federal regulators to allow them to view confidential documents on the plant's startup.

Shell on Sunday declined to comment on Venture Global's latest move to bolster its sales. Shell previously said Venture Global's sales of Calcasieu plant LNG cargoes without providing them to contract customers was deceitful.

Spanish energy giant Repsol has asked U.S. regulators to review the plant's commissioning process.

The shipping fleet, along with a deal Venture Global has for the long-term use of an import terminal to regasify its cargoes in Europe, would give the company a bigger role in the global supply chain for its LNG, the company said.

The second phase of Calcasieu Pass could start producing LNG in 2026 if it gets regulatory approval soon, Sabel said on Sunday. The plant would have capacity to produce 20 million metric tons per annum (mtpa), much of which the company has already sold through 20-year sales and purchase agreements.

The first two production trains at the plant could be completed within 10 months, Sabel said.

The company is planning another LNG project at Plaquemines, also in Louisiana. The completion of that project would give Venture Global more capacity than Shell, BP or Exxon, Sabel said.

Venture Global does not expect to sell 100% of future liquefaction capacity, with plans to trade the excessSabel added.

If a pause by the U.S. government on approving new LNG projects announced in January is prolonged, it would drive up the global cost of the fuel, Sabel said.

If the pause becomes permanent, Venture Global will invest in plants in other parts of the world, said Sabel.

"We will look for opportunities to develop liquefaction facilities outside the U.S.," Sabel told journalists.

A recent fall in LNG prices is driving higher demand for cargoes from Europe, he added.

Sabel also said the company was not interested in any mergers nor partners since money was not a problem and the focus was on continued expansion.

(Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Simon Webb, Chris Reese, Jamie Freed and Edwina Gibbs)

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Bureau Veritas, Hanwha conclude project for LNG carrier https://www.naturalgasworld.com/bureau-veritas-hanwha-conclude-project-for-lng-carrier-110213 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/bureau-veritas-hanwha-conclude-project-for-lng-carrier-110213 Fri, 15 Mar 2024 14:00:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) News By Country South Korea Bureau Veritas (BV) on March 15 announced the completion of a joint development project with South Korea's Hanwha Ocean to develop a 270,000 m3 LNG carrier. 

Hanwha Ocean's proprietary hull design for the 270,000 m3 LNG carrier was crafted to anticipate and meet the future demands of the LNG market, BV said. By optimising the hull’s performance and maximising cargo capacity, this design surpasses the capabilities of existing 263,000 m3 LNG carriers and floating storage and regasification units, it added.

Following comprehensive verification of the hull design, BV delivered the certification to Hanwha Ocean on February 28. 

Sang-Don Kang, vice president of the basic design department at Hanwha Ocean, said, “The newly developed 270,000 m3 LNG carrier is dedicated to minimising unit freight costs and ensuring structural robustness for the vessel’s safety performance. I am pleased that the structural reliability of this new vessel will be verified once again through this joint development project with BV.”

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Mereenie JV stops gas supply to Aussie east coast due to pipeline outage https://www.naturalgasworld.com/mereenie-jv-stops-gas-supply-to-aussie-east-coast-due-to-pipeline-outage-110211 https://www.naturalgasworld.com/mereenie-jv-stops-gas-supply-to-aussie-east-coast-due-to-pipeline-outage-110211 Fri, 15 Mar 2024 12:30:00 +0000 Natural Gas & LNG News Asia/Oceania Security of Supply Corporate News By Country Australia Central Petroleum reported on March 15 that the Mereenie joint venture, which operates the Mereenie gas field in Northern Territory (NT), will halt the supply of gas to the Australian east coast due to an outage at the Northern Gas Pipeline (NGP).

According to Central Petroleum, the joint venture received notification that the NGP, responsible for connecting Northern Territory gas to the east coast, is anticipated to remain closed until June 2024.

During this period of outage, gas delivery to east coast customers will be temporarily suspended. However, Central said its customers in the NT will continue to be unaffected, as has been the case during previous outages.

Presently, the Mereenie joint venture has decreased sales volumes by approximately 13.6 terajoules/day (3.4 terajoules/day net to Central). The joint venture is collaborating with key NT stakeholders and customers to redirect this gas supply to NT customers for the duration of the outage, Central said.

The Mereenie joint venture consists of Central Petroleum, Macquarie Mereenie, New Zealand Oil and Gas, and Cue Energy. Recently, Horizon Oil entered into an agreement with Macquarie Mereenie to acquire a 25% non-operated interest in the OL4 and OL5 development licenses, encompassing the Mereenie gas field.

The NGP, spanning 622 kilometers, serves as a critical gas transmission pipeline linking Tennant Creek in NT to Mount Isa in Queensland. It is owned and operated by the Australian gas infrastructure company Jemena.

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