Natural Gas Markets News

The owner of the second-largest U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant has not yet provided regulators with a final repair plan, according to a person familiar with the matter, likely pushing any restart into the first quarter of next year.The outage since a fiery explosion in June has underscored the global demand for new gas supplies and required major LNG traders and customers of the roughly 16 million tonne per year processing facility to buy replacement cargoes at huge markups.Freeport LNG had pledged in August to restart gas-processing by early to mid-November…

Over the last year we have seen an upswing in floating production and storage systems ordering after many years of low activity. According to our colleagues at World Energy Reports, “The global oil and natural gas markets are contending with rebounding energy demand on top of supply disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As a result, activity and business sentiment in the floating production sector has seldom been stronger.”  This increased activity in the floating production…

The global oil and natural gas markets are contending with rebounding energy demand on top of supply disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. As a result, activity and business sentiment in the floating production sector have seldom been stronger. Brent crude has been trading above $100 over the past three months, generating record profits for E&P operators -- providing an incentive to increase capital expenditures on new development projects.Several FPSO projects have moved into the near-term contract queue…

South Korean shipbuilding firm Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) has earlier this month delivered a floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) to Excelerate Energy.The FSRU, named the Excelerate Sequoia, is Excelerate Energy's tenth FSRU vessel. All ten FSRUs were built by DSME.The vessel has a storage capacity of 173,400 cubic meters and is capable of operating as both an FSRU and a fully tradable LNG carrier, Excelerate Energy said. In September of last year, Excelerate and Maran Gas Maritime Inc. (MGM) signed a five-year bareboat charter agreement (BBC) for the FSRU.

North American energy infrastructure company Sempra Energy and Saudi Aramco's Aramco Services Company, signed an Interim Project Participation Agreement for the Port Arthur LNG export project under development in Jefferson County, Texas.According to a press release, the IPPA represents another milestone for both companies after having signed a heads of agreement in May last year for the purchase of 5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and a 25% equity investment in the Port Arthur LNG project.Jeffrey W. Martin, chairman and CEO of Sempra Energy said:"Today's announcement is a reflection of the growing alignment between our companies' interest in the overall success of the Port Arthur LNG project.

Global downstream gas and LNG logistics company Atlantic Gulf & Pacific (AG&P) has made a strategic equity investment in Norway-based Kanfer Shipping.Kanfer is a developer of small-scale LNG sea transportation, maritime break-bulk solutions, floating storage facilities as well as LNG bunkering. Together, Kanfer and AG&P will make LNG more accessible and commercially viable for downstream customers in new and growing natural gas markets."Kanfer has captured the attention of the global LNG maritime infrastructure industry with its patented, barge design that makes breaking bulk cargoes of LNG easier, faster and more efficient," said a…

Lithuanian liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal operator, AB Klaipedos Nafta (KN) has started a yearly procedure, i.e. allocation of LNG terminal capacities for the new gas year.Capacities are allocated in advance, before the end of the gas year, according to the usual practice in the natural gas markets.The Company performs the allocation of capacities according to the publicly announced Regulations for Use of Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal, which were verified and approved by the National Commission for Energy Control and Prices and the Board of the Company.During the allocation procedure of the LNG terminal capacities the LNG…

The engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) firm serving the liquefied natural gas (LNG), petroleum gas (LPG) and natural gas (NG) industries, CHI Engineering Services is aquired by engineering consulting NV5 Global, Inc.CHI’s client base includes the majority of LNG facility owner/operators in the US. The acquisition will complement NV5’s rapidly growing power group in the West and drive the expansion of energy services nationwide.The $55 million acquisition is evaluated at approximately six times trailing EBITDA and will be made with a combination of cash and stock. The acquisition will be immediately accretive to NV5’s earnings.“NV5 has experienced a rapid increase in demand for our engineering, permitting, and construction services from our energy clients.

The evolution of the global natural gas market, which has been driven by the growth in liquefied natural gas (LNG) demand, continues to change the relationship between buyers and sellers, and raises new challenges for the global security of energy supplies.Global natural gas markets are being reshaped by the development of major emerging LNG buyers led by China, and the rising production and exports from the United States. The third annual edition of the International Energy Agency’s Global Gas Security Review provides an in-depth analysis of recent security-related issues and lessons learned.China’s supply shortfall over the last winter, which triggered ripple effects around the world, highlighted the pivotal role of LNG in enhancing global gas security and flexibility of supply.

Excelerate Energy Bangladesh completed the commissioning of its Moheshkhali Floating LNG (MLNG) terminal – Bangladesh’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) import facility – signifying the official commencement of operations for the project.This milestone was achieved approximately 25 months after the execution of project agreements, which took place in July 2016, with the state-owned Bangladesh Oil, Gas & Mineral Corporation (Petrobangla) and 13 months following the receipt of all permits required to achieve financial close in August 2017 with its lenders, led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC).Located offshore Moheshkhali Island in the Bay of Bengal…

A spat brewing between Qatar, the world's No.1 producer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), and its biggest customers in Japan underscores rising tensions between buyers and sellers of the super-chilled fuel as a supply glut unbalances the market. Importers of LNG having been pushing for greater benefits amid the surplus, signing new, cheaper contracts that give them more flexible terms, while exporters try to preserve long-term supply deals written in their favour during tighter markets. Worried some buyers are becoming too bold in their push for an advantage, Qatar Petroleum warned customers in Japan - by far the biggest LNG importer - not to press too hard in long-term supply talks, because it could result in Japanese companies being squeezed out of Qatari gas projects.

With the United States about to become a net exporter of natural gas for the first time in 60 years, Intercontinental Exchange Inc said on Wednesday it would begin trading the first-ever U.S. liquefied natural gas futures contract in May. ICE said the contracts would be cash-settled against the Platts LNG Gulf Coast Marker price assessment and use Platts-derived U.S. GCM LNG forward curves for daily settlement purposes. The curves will have an initial term of 48 months. "Domestic and international market participants now have a risk-management solution that lays the foundation for a more effective means of hedging their spot and forward exposure," J.C. Kneale, ICE's vice president, North American power and natural gas markets, said in a statement. U.S.

Singapore Exchange (SGX) is developing a spot pricing index for the Middle East and India liquefied natural gas markets (LNG) in collaboration with inter-dealer broker Tullett Prebon, says WSJ. The index is aimed at market participants who are forced to rely on tenders for setting up prices due to the lack of an accepted price marker. The deal is aimed at boosting Singapore's status as a key LNG hub providing storage, trading, shipping and price discovery activities. The new index aims to provide a credible, consistent and transparent pricing mechanism, as the volume of LNG trades in the region continues to rise. It could also serve as a first step towards standardising LNG trade in the region. The exchange has already launched a spot price index for Asian LNG, known as Singapore SLInG.

Oslo-based Höegh LNG said it has signed an Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU)contract with Chilean Octopus LNG for the Penco-Lirquén LNG import terminal to be located in Concepción Bay, Chile. The contract is for a period of 20 years and is expected to generate an average annual EBITDA of around USD 36 million, Höegh LNG said in a statement. The contract is subject to Octopus completing financing and obtaining necessary environmental approvals, and the planned start-up is in the second quarter 2018. Höegh LNG will service the contract with an FSRU from its newbuilding program currently in progress. The FSRU will be offered to Höegh LNG Partners LP in due course.

A potential deep-water port LNG export project for the Gulf of Mexico has submitted applications to the Maritime Administration and the United States Coast Guard for approval. Delfin LNG LLC has submitted an application to the Maritime Administration (MARAD) and the United States Coast Guard (USCG) to construct, own, and operate the Delfin LNG Project (Port Delfin) under the Deepwater Port Act. The primary purpose of the proposed project is to provide a safe and reliable facility to liquefy natural gas for export to free trade agreement (FTA) and non-FTA nations under authorizations from the US Department of Energy. The deepwater port…

A smooth start to operations at BG Group's Australian project in Queensland is expected to help the British company to roughly double its liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies in 2015/16, it said on Wednesday. Seven cargoes have been shipped since December from the Queensland Curtis LNG facility, said Steve Hill, BG Group's head of global energy marketing and shipping. The plant is expected to stop operations for about a week of maintenance in the near term before ramping up to full capacity, allowing it to ship about one cargo a week. In the United States, BG Group has signed a purchase agreement for Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass LNG terminal, with first deliveries due in December.

MILAN, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Atlantic natural gas markets are seeing some of the biggest price swings in years as volatile European trade, freezing U.S. weather and Brazilian demand leave tankers torn over where to sail. The region's gas markets, each taking turns as top payer before being outbid again, have boosted consumption of shipped liquefied natural gas (LNG), triggering multiple diversions as vessels chase the best price. Two weeks ago Europe became the world's premium gas market after a year-long demand slump in Asia, thrusting Atlantic trade into the spotlight. A mix of Dutch production caps, supply outages and technical trading has driven European gas prices towards fresh multi-month highs as Asian prices show only meager gains, widening premiums.

Liquefied Natural Gas Limited informed that on 31st October 2014, its wholly owned company Bear Head LNG Corporation, filed for modifications to the existing construction and environmental permits granted by the Nova Scotia Utility and Review Board and Nova Scotia Environment. “This is a major step in adapting Bear Head LNG’s 12 existing construction and environmental permits to an export project. These key regulatory filings help maintain our accelerated pace in executing the project development plan,” says John Godbold, Bear Head LNG Chief Operating Officer and Project Director. In addition, Bear Head LNG is announcing expansion of the initial facility production capacity to 8 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), doubling the 4 mtpa previously announced.

As supply and demand factors increasingly point to a future in which natural gas plays a greater role in the global energy mix, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released a special report exploring the potential for a “golden age” of gas. The new report, part of the World Energy Outlook (WEO) 2011 series, examines the key factors that could result in a more prominent role for natural gas in the global energy mix, and the implications for other fuels, energy security and climate change. The report, titled, “Are We Entering a Golden Age of Gas?” presents a scenario in which global use of gas rises by more than 50% from 2010 levels and accounts for more than a quarter of global energy demand by 2035.

Agreements concluded with America's Dominion energy company have secured Statoil a fourfold increase in its access to liquefied natural gas capacity in the US market. This will be achieved by expanding the Cove Point LNG terminal in Maryland and associated pipeline transportation capacity on the American east coast. "These agreements give us unique market access to the north-eastern USA, where gas demand is high and the market robust and liquid," says Peter Mellbye, executive vice president for Natural Gas in Statoil. The deals give Statoil access to terminal, storage and pipeline transportation totalling about 10 billion cubic metres of gas per year (1.05 billion cubic feet per day).

Average crude oil prices for July were little changed from June. The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) spot average for July was $30.75 per barrel compared to $30.66 in June. EIA’s Outlook is for prices to remain firm through the rest of 2003, or at least until autumn, when OECD oil inventories may rebuild above observed 5-year lows. Once inventories have been rebuilt, WTI oil prices may slide gradually to $26 per barrel during 2004, as Iraqi oil exports return to near pre-war levels. U.S.

As Russia tightened its grip on Ukraine's Crimea region this month, U.S. and European Union officials were urging the Obama Administration to speed up approvals of more liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals. Yet Russian exporter Gazprom's ability to swamp European natural gas markets with supply while depressing prices will make it difficult for as-yet unavailable U.S. supplies to displace Russian gas in Europe. The EU is keen to diversify away from Russian gas imports, a stance hardened by Gazprom's decision to switch off supply to Ukraine during a pricing dispute in 2009 which curtailed supplies to EU member states, as well. Yet U.S. LNG, exports of which are expected to ramp up beginning next year, are not a silver bullet in supply diversification for Europe.

The Subcommittee on Energy and Power today approved H.R. 6, the Domestic Prosperity and Global Freedom Act, by a vote of 15 to 11. Authored by Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), the legislation would cut through the red tape blocking exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG). H.R. 6 grants immediate approval of complete export applications currently filed with the Department of Energy and modifies the process moving forward to ensure exports to our allies are no longer subject to unnecessary delays. The need for increased LNG exports has received considerable attention in the wake of the crisis in Ukraine and as Russia continues to leverage its energy resources against our allies. Exporting American natural gas would increase global competition, and passage of H.R.