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Natural Gas News

28 Feb 2024

Qatar's Bigger LNG Expansion to Squeeze US, Other Rivals

(File photo: QatarEnergy)

Qatar's planned expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG) production could see it control nearly 25% share of the global market by 2030 and squeeze out rival projects including in the United States where President Biden paused new export approvals, market experts say.Qatar, one of the world's top LNG exporters, plans an 85% expansion in LNG output from its North Field's current 77 million metric tons per year (mtpa) to 142 mtpa by 2030, from previously expected 126 mtpa.Some market experts said that the move will have an impact on global projects in the United States…

13 Dec 2023

Germany's Stade LNG Project Expects Floating Terminal in February

(Image: Hanseatic Energy Hub)

Germany's emerging liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the Elbe river port of Stade expects its floating regasification vessel (FSRU) to arrive in February, allowing seaborne gas cargoes to be fed into local pipeline grids, its management said on Wednesday.The move is part of Germany's quest to increase LNG import capacity so it can end reliance on Russian pipeline gas, which Europe has heavily depended on prior to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine last year."The Transgas Force (the designated ship) is anticipated to arrive in February and will remain for three years, ahead of the commissioning

07 Dec 2023

GTT Enters Strategic Cooperation Agreement with CSSC

(Photo: GTT)

French engineering firm GTT announced it has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Chinese shipbuilding group China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited (CSSC).The agreement provides for cooperation between GTT and 12 subsidiaries of the CSSC conglomerate, notably in ship design and construction, cryogenic containment technologies for liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping, LNG as fuel and smart shipping solutions.As part of this agreement, GTT and CSSC aim to develop and market competitive LNG tank solutions with GTT technologies…

05 Dec 2023

Vessel to Complete Mexico's First Floating LNG Plant Sets Sail

(Photo: New Fortress Energy)

A storage vessel for Mexico's first liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant departed U.S. waters on Monday for Altamira, Mexico, according to ship tracking data, putting the offshore project on track to soon inaugurate exports.LNG developer New Fortress Energy last week said its 1.4-million-metric-tons-per-year Altamira floating LNG project had begun processing gas. The company earlier this year had postponed the inauguration amid delays in receiving the infrastructure."We're excited to announce that we've achieved first gas for our Fast LNG 1 unit…

04 Dec 2023

Snam Finalizes Purchase of FSRU for Ravenna

Snam headquarters in San Donato Milanese, Italy (Photo: Snam)

Snam has finalized the 400 million euro acquisition of a new floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal that will be located offshore from the city of Ravenna, the Italian gas grid operator said on Monday.The new ship dubbed BW Singapore has a storage capacity of about 170,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas and a regasification capacity of about 5 billion cubic meters per year and will help Italy to diversify its energy supplies.The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) is expected to start operations in 2025.That will follow the conclusion of the related permitting and reg

27 Nov 2023

Shell's Prelude LNG Facility Expected to Resume Exports Next Month

(Photo: Shelll)

Shell has almost finished extensive maintenance at its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility off Australia and is set to resume exports next month, according to industry sources and shipping data.The timing of the giant floating facility's return to operations is likely to coincide with peak consumption in major markets, including China and Europe, as winter in the northern hemisphere drives demand, although high inventories have limited buying so far this year.In a sign that the work…

26 Nov 2023

Report: New Gas Supply Needed in All Australian Net Zero Pathways

Domestic demand and exports under each scenario courtesy of EY

Australia will still need substantial gas production 26 years from now to ensure reliable and affordable energy in 2050, even under a net zero scenario, according to The future role of natural gas in Australia and the region.EY was commissioned by Australian Energy Producers to provide an independent assessment of the future role of natural gas in Australia and the region to inform Australia’s Future Gas Strategy. EY examined around 350 net zero pathways around the world and has…

24 Oct 2023

Finland Says Gas Pipeline Likely Broken by Ship Dragging Anchor

(Photo: Finnish Navy)

Damage to a Baltic Sea gas pipeline earlier this month is believed to have been caused by a ship dragging a large anchor along the seabed, but it was too early to tell if this was an accident or a deliberate act, Finnish police said on Tuesday.Investigators said they had now retrieved a lost anchor from the seabed location where the pipeline ruptured on Oct. 8, and were investigating whether it belonged to a Chinese container vessel.Police have previously said damage to the Balticconnector…

28 Sep 2023

Biden's Five-year Offshore Oil Plan to Have Historically Few Lease Sales

© Cavan / Adobe Stock

The Biden administration's five-year plan for offshore oil and gas leasing will not include any sales in 2024 and will feature the lowest number of auctions in the history of the program in the four years to follow, according to three sources familiar with the matter.The schedule for leasing in the Gulf of Mexico and Alaska for 2024-2028 is due on Friday following several delays and months of battling between environmentalists and drilling advocates over what the policy should…

18 Sep 2023

New FSRU Arrives in France as Greenpeace Blocks Port

© Jean Nicholas Guillo / Greenpeace

A new LNG floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) arrived in western France on Monday morning, a TotalEnergies' spokesperson said, as activist group Greenpeace tried to prevent it from entering port.Demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Europe has grown in the wake of the war in Ukraine, with France relying on its four LNG terminals to replace Russian gas imports and help supply neighbors like Germany.The Cape Ann FSRU arrived at Le Havre port on Monday morning, LSEG ship tracking data showed.However, environmental group Greenpeace blocked the tanker's course in protest at what they sa

23 Aug 2023

Gazprom's First LNG Cargo via Arctic Destined for China's Jingtang

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from Russia's Gazprom being sent via the Northern Sea Route (NSR) for the first time is destined for the Chinese port of Jingtang, Refinitiv ship tracking data shows.The Velikiy Novgorod tanker was loaded at the Portovaya LNG plant on the Baltic Sea on Aug. 14, according to the data.As of Wednesday, it was moving in the Kara Sea in the Arctic with the data showing an estimated arrival at Jingtang on Sept. 12.Earlier this month, Russia also shipped a rare naphtha cargo via the North Sea route, according to traders and Refinitiv data.(Reuters - Reporting by Oksana Kobzeva; writing by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by Jason Neely)

22 Aug 2023

Australia LNG Strikes Would Need to Last Over a Month to Spike Prices, Analysts Say

Threatened strikes by workers at Australian liquefied natural gas (LNG) providers would need to last more than a month to significantly push up global prices, analysts said this week.The Woodside Energy and Chevron operations supply about 10% of global LNG output and worries of a walkout have lifted prices of European gas benchmark TTF forward curve 5%-7% higher over the September-to-April period than just before the news of a potential strike.The three Australian plants facing possible strikes risk losing 4 to 5 billion cubic meters of production per month if they go offline…

26 Jun 2023

Wison’s FLNG FEED Design Earns AIP from ABS

File photo: a Wison FLNG (Photo: Wison)

Classification society ABS announced it has granted approval In principle (AIP) to Wison Offshore and Marine’s (WOM) Extended FEED on its standardized 3.5 MTPA floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) design.WOM has said the standardized design reduces CO2 emissions and results in a shortened engineering schedule by about 40%.Jiang Hao, WOM General Manager, FLNG Division, said, “WOM continues to optimize and standardize FLNG design, which would significantly improve the production efficiency and effectively reduce the carbon emissions in the production process. . .

26 May 2023

Asian Spot LNG Prices Slide for Fifth Straight Week

© Anatoly Kolodey / Adobe Stock

Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices have weakened for the fifth consecutive week on muted demand due to healthy stocks, remaining at their lowest level in two years.The average LNG price for July delivery into north-east Asia was down 3% from the previous week at $9.50 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), the lowest since early May 2021, industry sources estimated."North Asia remains largely void of demand. Prices have continued to walk down week-on-week and support hasn't been helped by Japanese utilities selling into an already weak market…

16 Mar 2023

Exxon Considers Selling Stake in LNG Terminal Offshore Italy

©Terminale GNL Adriatico

Exxon Mobil Corp is considering selling its majority stake in Italy's main regasification terminal as part of a wider strategy to divest from non-core assets, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The Rovigo liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal is owned by Exxon's subsidiary ExxonMobil Italiana Gas (70.7%), QatarEnergy subsidiary Qatar Terminal Company Limited (22%) and Snam Spa SRG.MI (7.3%). Snam, an Italian gas grid operator, has the first right of refusal should a partner decide to divest.

09 Mar 2023

Denmark Investigates Yacht Linked to Nord Stream Blasts

A harbor in Christiansö  (© konradkerker / Adobe Stock)

Danish police have searched for a yacht on a tiny Baltic Sea island near the Nord Stream pipeline blast sites, the local administrator said on Thursday.German authorities confirmed on Wednesday they had raided a ship in January that may have been used to transport explosives used to blow up the pipelines."The police was searching for a specific boat that had moored here in September," Soren Thiim Andersen, the highest authority on the island of Christiansö, told Reuters.The Sept.

07 Mar 2023

New Intelligence Points to Pro-Ukraine Group in Nord Stream Attack

(Photo: Danish Defense)

New intelligence reviewed by U.S. officials suggests that a pro-Ukraine group - likely comprised of Ukrainians or Russians - attacked the Nord Stream gas pipelines in September, but there are no firm conclusions, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.There was no evidence that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy or other Ukrainian government officials were behind the attacks which spewed natural gas into the Baltic Sea, the newspaper reported, citing U.S. officials.Reuters could not independently verify the report.The Sept.

07 Mar 2023

Asia Demand to Drive Cheniere's LNG Shipments this Year

© moofushi / Adobe Stock

Cheniere Energy expects to ship more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Asia this year, after European customers took the lion's share of its 2022 cargoes, an official said on Monday.The top U.S. exporter of LNG shipped a total of 638 cargoes last year, with slightly over 70% delivered to Europe, Chief Operating Officer Corey Grindal said at the CERAWeek energy conference.Cheniere last year gave the financial go ahead for an expansion of its Corpus Christi, Texas, liquefaction plant and has sought an early environmental review with federal regulators for an expansion at its Sabine Pass…

17 Jan 2023

Prelude Loads First Tanker Since Output Suspension

(File photo: Shell)

The first liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker to berth at Shell's Prelude floating LNG site off Western Australia since it was shut down after a fire has begun loading, Refinitiv data shows.The Methane Becki Anne vessel berthed at the Prelude plant on Jan. 17, Refinitiv ship-tracking data showed.Gas production at the 3.6 million tonne Prelude facility had been suspended in mid-December after a small fire. At the time, Shell gave no timeline for when the plant would resume output…

05 Jan 2023

Norway Gas Exports to Stay at Record Levels for 4-5 Years

© Angela Rohde / Adobe Stock

Norway plans to export around 122 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas in 2023, in line with last year’s level, and to maintain this volume for the next four or five years, Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Aasland said on Thursday.The output for 2022, which had not previously been released, was up 8% from 2021, in line with a previous government forecast, and similar to the all-time high of 122.37 bcm set in 2017.“Norwegian authorities have updated the estimate for the sales from gas from the Norwegian continental shelf in 2023.

29 Dec 2022

FSRU Exemplar Arrives in Finland

FSRU Exemplar  - Credit: Excelerate Energy

Excelerate Energy's floating storage and regasification unit (“FSRU”) Exemplar arrived at the port of Inkoo, Finland on December 28, 2022. The FSRU was previously loaded with a partial cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) which will serve as the initial commissioning cargo for the terminal."The FSRU Exemplar, which is chartered to Gasgrid Finland Oy (“Gasgrid”) for a period of ten years, will provide flexible, reliable, and secure delivery of regasified LNG to Finland and other Baltic countries," the FSRU owner said.

08 Nov 2022

ABS Grants AIP for HHI's Hi-ReGAS+ Regasification System

(Photo: ABS)

Classification society ABS announced it has awarded approval in principle (AIP) for a next-generation, highly efficient concept of a regasification system (Hi-ReGAS+) for floating storage regasification units (FSRUs) and floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals that uses natural circulation.The technology was developed by Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (KSOE), the intermediate holding company of Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and is a follow-on model to the Hi-ReGAS system from HHI Group.

17 Oct 2022

Nord Stream Breaches a Stark Reminder of Undersea Infrastructure Vulnerabilities

The gas leak at Nord Stream 2 in September seen from the Danish F-16 interceptor on Bornholm. Photo: Danish Defence

On the night of September 26, near the end of the calm season on the Baltic, a broiling kilometer-wide circle disturbed the face of the sea and a huge mass of methane erupted into the air. The gas formed a cloud that crossed Europe, in what’s considered the greatest single release of this potent greenhouse gas ever recorded.It was caused by four breaches of Russia’s Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines, located in or near the territorial seas of Denmark and Sweden. Seismologists detected explosions at a depth of 70-90 meters on the seabed.

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