Lng Markets News

U.S.-based LNG firm Excelerate Energy has signed a long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG) sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with the Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla). Petrobangla has agreed to purchase 0.85 to 1.0 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG from Excelerate for a term of 15 years beginning January 2026. Excelerate will deliver 0.85 MTPA of LNG in 2026 and 2027 and 1 MTPA from 2028 to 2040.Excelerate first opened the Bangladesh market to LNG in 2018 with the development of its integrated Moheshkhali LNG floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) terminal.

Germany is set to receive new flows of Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) from 2026 after QatarEnergy and ConocoPhillips COP.N on Tuesday signed two sales and purchase agreements for its export covering at least a 15-year period. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, competition for LNG has become intense, with Europe in particular needing vast amounts to help replace Russian pipeline gas that used to make up almost 40% of the continent's imports.The deal, the first of its kind to Europe from Qatar's North Field expansion project…

While the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in few direct claims for the marine insurance sector, the impact on the welfare of crews and the boom in shipping and port congestion, exacerbated by the Ukraine invasion, raises potential safety concerns.Demand for crew is currently high with the shipping boom, yet following the Covid-19 pandemic many skilled and experienced crew are leaving the industry, having endured many months, and in some cases, years, stuck on vessels. For those that choose to remain…

For most of 2020, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping market was in a depressed state like many other segments of the global gas industry. LNG export cargoes fell by 0.2% y-o-y in 2020 to reach 5,682 shipments, driven by a slowdown in LNG demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The commissioning of various LNG carriers around the world exacerbated that trend. Between the period 2018 and 2020, the market witnessed the record commissioning of LNG carriers, with 134 LNG carriers coming on line, with 41 of those being commissioned in 2020.

A new set of independent indices for the liquified natural gas (LNG) seaborne trade went live this week (2 March), based on the carriers burning LNG, rather than marine fuel oil or marine gas oil, as their primary fuel.Published twice weekly, the new indices have been given the acronym (BLNGg) and will be published alongside the current LNG indices which are based on LNG carriers burning Very Low Sulphur Fuel Oil (VLSFO). Historical data for the new indices will be available dating…

Avenir LNG on Thursday announced the launch of the Avenir Allegiance, dubbed the world’s largest dual-purpose, LNG supply and bunkering vessel, built by CIMC Sinopacific Offshore & Engineering Co. (CIMC SOE).The vessel was launched at 7 am on January 27th, 2021 at Zhoushan Changhong International Shipyard Co. Ltd. Due for delivery from CIMC SOE in the third quarter of this year, the vessel will be the first 20,000cbm vessel to join the Avenir LNG fleet and the world’s largest LNG bunkering vessel…

Höegh LNG has entered into a binding commitment to supply H-Energy with an FSRU in Jaigarh, India from as early as the first quarter of 2021.Jaigarh is south of Mumbai in Maharashtra state, India. The final agreement will be for 10 years with annual termination options after year five, Höegh LNG said.Höegh LNG will allocate one of its available FSRUs currently trading in the LNG carrier market for the project.President and Chief Executive Officer Sveinung J.S. Støhle says: "We are delighted to have entered into a binding commitment with H-Energy for their new LNG import terminal in Jaigarh…

Russian gas company Novatek has said it has shipped its first LNG Cargo to the United Arab Emirates.Novatek said Friday that the cargo was shipped from the Yamal LNG project by its subsidiary NOVATEK Gas & Power Asia under a spot contract."The LNG cargo was transshipped in Europe onto the conventional LNG tanker “Yamal Spirit” and delivered to the Jebel Ali LNG Terminal in accordance with the contract’s delivery schedule," Novatek said.“With our first shipment to the United Arab Emirates, we are expanding the geography of our LNG supplies,” noted Lev Feodosyev, NOVATEK’s First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board.

Portugal’s Navalrocha Shipyard is reporting a flurry of activity in 2020 as it navigates the COVID-19 outbreak and prepares for a packed order book in the coming months.Navalrocha commercial director Sergio Rodrigues said the shipyard had recorded several landmarks during a highly memorable period in its history, completing its first multimillion Euro refit for a seismic survey vessel before managing its first ballast water treatment system (BWTS) installation.The projects were accompanied by a series of other deals involving bunker tankers…

Lockdowns to slow the coronavirus pandemic are pummelling gas demand in the world's biggest buyers of liquefied natural gas (LNG), pushing Asia's spot prices to record lows and forcing some suppliers to start cutting output. Economies worldwide have ground to a halt as virus containment measures have taken their toll, slashing gas demand for power generation, heating, cooking, vehicles and chemical manufacture. The world's biggest LNG markets - Japan, China, South Korea, and India - are all seeing a drop in demand. Asia's spot LNG prices dropped to $1.85 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) last week, the lowest ever, as cargoes have flooded the market. "At prices in the $2/mmBtu range ... some producers are getting close to not recovering cash costs of their operations.

Malaysian state-run giant Petroliam Nasional (Petronas) subsidiary Petronas LNG (PLL) has signed a 12-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply deal with China’s Shenergy Group. Under the terms of the 12-year heads of agreement (HOA), Petronas LNG will supply approximately 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG to Shenergy’s Wuhaogou receiving terminal.Additionally, the LNG supply agreement involves a shipping collaboration to construct and charter new mid-sized LNG vessels. The deal is effective from 2022.Through this new long-term agreement, Petronas continues to establish itself as Shenergy’s preferred LNG solutions partner, having been a major LNG supplier to its subsidiary, Shanghai LNG Co., Ltd since 2006.

Even as the United States and Iran appear to signal a keenness to avoid further conflict, oil and gas shipowners are bracing to pay a price for the war of words that culminated in rocket strikes in Iraq over the last week - higher insurance bills.According to industry sources, payments known as war risk premiums for tankers shuttling through the Strait of Hormuz could rise significantly, adding hundreds of thousands of dollars to shipping costs in some cases that will ultimately…

Japanese gas buyers on Wednesday marked the 50th anniversary since the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) arrived in Japan, now the world's biggest importer of the fuel.The arrival of the cargo on Nov. 4, 1969 helped transform Japan's energy system, which had relied on oil, coal and gas from coal in an era of high growth, before nuclear power was developed.But Japan's energy situation is undergoing huge changes in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011, which…

Dynagas LNG Partners LP, an international owner and operator of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, announced it has secured a $675 million syndicated loan from leading international banks.The credit facility will be secured by mortgages on the partnership’s entire fleet of six LNG carriers, the Monaco-headquartered company said.This move is expected to help the company eliminate its existing dept of totaling $720 million.Tony Lauritzen, Chief Executive Officer, Dynagas LNG Partners said: "We are pleased to enter into this transformative re-financing. The Credit Facility provides the Partnership with reduced cost of debt relative to…

The Type B Mid-Scale Containment Solution.SSRC Technologies AS introduces a novel containment solution for small and mid-scale liquefied gas carriers. The Type B containment system provides excellent thermal performance, low weight and ease of fabrication. In cooperation with world-renown Moss Maritime AS, the patented Type B containment system has been specifically developed for the mid-scale LPG, NH3, Petchem and LNG markets. The SSRC system is also uniquely suited to scalable floating storage and regasification solutions…

India's H-Energy Global signed an agreement to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russian gas producer Novatek on a long-term contract as it looks to meeting energy needs of Asia's third-largest economy.The MOU envisages cooperation in LNG supplies to India on a long-term basis, joint investment in future LNG terminals of H-Energy and LNG projects of Novatek, as well as establishing a joint venture to market LNG and natural gas from Novatek’s portfolio to end-customers in India, Bangladesh and other markets.“India is one of the largest and fastest growing LNG markets, and will be one of the main sources of future growth in global demand for natural gas,” noted Novatek’s Chairman of the Management Board Leonid Mikhelson.“The Memorandum of Understanding is an important step towards enterin

U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) have been growing steadily and reached a new peak of 4.7 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in May 2019, according to the latest data published by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy.This year, the United States became the world’s third-largest LNG exporter, averaging 4.2 Bcf/d in the first five months of the year, exceeding Malaysia’s LNG exports of 3.6 Bcf/d during the same period.The United States is expected to remain the third-largest LNG exporter in the world, behind Australia and Qatar, in 2019–20.U.S. LNG exports have increased as four new liquefaction units (trains) with a combined capacity of 2.4 Bcf/d—Sabine Pass Train 5…

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), the operator of global exchanges and clearing houses and provider of data and listings services, launched a further nine Marine Fuel 0.5% futures contracts in advance of the implementation of the 0.5% sulfur cap by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in January 2020.The American company that owns exchanges for financial and commodity markets announced that its new futures contracts expand the existing suite of Marine Fuel contracts launched in February 2019 and will settle against the S&P Global Platts physical Marine Fuel 0.5% assessments.The IMO regulation limits sulfur emissions from shipping bunker fuel…

Infrastructure continues to expand, and pricing incentives will continue to shift as the market matures. The LNG markets look like they may resemble the clean product tanker market in several years, which is highly arbitrage driven. We look to see an increased number of portfolio players working the spot market, which will drive the commoditization of the space and enable further demand.The total ton-mile demand for LNG carriers has increased over the past several years. More than 60 countries have imported LNG cargoes in the past quarter…

Royal Dutch Shell has decided to withdraw from the Baltic liquefied natural gas (LNG), its joint project on the Russian Baltic coast with Gazprom after the Russian gas holding decided to change the concept of the project’s development.“Following Gazprom’s announcement on March 29 regarding the final development concept of Baltic LNG, we have decided to stop our involvement in this project,” Cederic Cremers, Shell Russia’s chairman, said in a statement.According to Reuters, the development comes as Western firms struggle to expand in Russia because of pressure from sanctions imposed by the United States, while for Gazprom it could mean limited access to Shell’s technology as well as the need to fund the project without the help of the Anglo-Dutch major.Shell…

Malaysian oil and gas company Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) said that it is well-positioned to meet rising LNG demand and expands its flexible and innovative LNG solutions for existing and new markets."With its growing portfolio of LNG supply sources in Malaysia, Australia, Egypt and soon in Canada, Petronas is well-positioned to provide clean energy through its flexible and innovative LNG solutions to existing and new demand markets, as well as to emerging trading hubs," said a press statement from the fully integrated oil and gas company.Petronas President and Group Chief Executive Officer Tan Sri Wan Zulkiflee Wan Ariffin said: “Asia…

During the first quarter 2019, spot LNG freight rates plummeted from the record levels seen in the previous quarter, said Flex LNG, the company controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen.Asia winter demand came in lower than expected due to an unseasonably mild weather in northern Asia, coupled with Japanese nuclear power plants restarting as well as an oversupplied LNG market due to start-up of new LNG production, said the emerging player in the LNG shipping.Asian LNG prices moved lower, trading closer to or at par with key US and European LNG markers, preventing arbitrage opportunities between the markets. Despite significant growth in liquefaction and exported volumes…

France’s Total and  Guanghui Energy, a China-based company, principally engaged in the natural gas and coal business, have signed a long-term sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for the supply of 0.7 million tonnes per year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for a period of 10 years.According to Total, the gas will be delivered to Guanghui’s regasification terminal in Qidong, Jiangsu Province, from Total’s global LNG portfolio.“We are delighted to start a long-term relationship with Guanghui, an increasingly successful LNG market player in China with clear ambitions for growth. This new supply contract is in line with Total’s strategy to expand its presence in the Chinese LNG market…