Elba Island News

Natural gas flows to U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants plunged this month after falling to a 20-month low in June as coronavirus lockdowns cut global demand for the fuel.Before the pandemic slashed energy demand, U.S. producers counted on LNG exports to keep growing fast as an outlet for their record gas output. But after soaring 68% in 2019 and 53% in 2018, U.S. LNG exports were only expected to rise about 7% in 2020.Gas pipeline flows to U.S. LNG export plants dropped…

A ship carrying liquefied natural gas from Nigeria is expected to drop its cargo in Georgia as energy firms look for a place to store the super-cooled fuel with prices higher in the United States and stockpiles nearing full capacity in Europe.The ship, Madrid Spirit, does not have a destination listed, according to data from Refinitiv, but is located a day or two away from Kinder Morgan Inc's Elba Island LNG plant.A unit of Royal Dutch Shell Plc chartered the ship, people familiar with the matter said.Shell, which has a long-term contract to use Elba, declined to comment.The United States, which is the world's third biggest LNG exporter behind Australia and Qatar…

Australia has become the largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter in the world. The record figure knocked Qatar out of the top spot."Australia is set to become the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter this year, overtaking Qatar, with its supplies expected to reach 81 million tonnes (MT) as Ichthys LNG and Prelude FLNG increase production," Rystad Energy said.Meanwhile, Qatari exports will remain at current levels, around 77 MT. The US will increase LNG exports from about 36 MT in 2019 to 56 MT in 2020, dominating new LNG supply contributions. Both Russia and Malaysia are each expected to add about 1.5 MT of LNG production during 2020.Overall in 2020…

Supported by low LNG prices, the LNG spot and short term market continues to represent an ever increasing share of global LNG trade, said Golar LNG, a liquefied natural gas shipping company registered in Bermuda."Continued strong growth in LNG production around the world and associated lower pricing together with customer’s increased focus on their ESG responsibility is also accelerating their appetite to switch from burning coal, fuel oil and diesel to cheaper and cleaner LNG," Iain Ross, CEO, Golar LNG, said.Dominated by US projects, 114mtpa of new liquefaction capacity is slated to come on stream between 2020 and 2025. Based on current…

GasLog, an international owner, operator and manager of liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, is predicting a tighter LNG shipping market, as increasing United States LNG output combines with a seasonal uptick in demand for gas, resulting in rising demand for shipping and higher utilization of the global fleet.These underlying trends in the LNG commodity and shipping markets point towards a structurally tighter market through 2020 and into 2021.As of October 28, 2019, the LNG fleet and orderbook (excluding floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) and vessels with capacity below 100,000 cbm) stood at 507 and 110 vessels, respectively…

Kinder Morgan expects to bring the remaining nine units of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility at Elba Island into service by the first half of next year, Chief Executive Officer Steven Kean said on Wednesday.The first unit of Kinder Morgan's Elba Island facility began producing LNG natural gas for export last month, and is one of several new U.S. projects adding to global supplies.The Houston pipeline operator plans to bring three more into service this year, with another six to start up in the first half of 2020…

U.S. regulators approved Kinder Morgan's request to start production of liquefied natural gas at the first plant of its new export facility, a year after it had been originally due to begin operations, filings showed this week.The Elba Island facility is one of half a dozen in the country beginning to produce LNG for export, contributing to soaring supplies of fuel globally which has upended gas markets in Europe and Asia.It is also quite unusual among U.S. facilities, employing modular technology to build much smaller "trains…

Kinder Morgan Inc has halted the startup process of its liquefaction facility at Elba Island near Savannah, Georgia, following mandatory evacuation orders as Hurricane Dorian approached, Chief Executive Officer Steven Kean said on Wednesday.The Houston pipeline operator began construction on the $2 billion facility in late 2016, underpinned by a 20-year contract with Royal Dutch Shell Plc for exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG).The company will resume startup operations at the LNG plant when workers can safely return to the island…

Despite the liquefied natural gas (LNG) demand in the first quarter of 2019 being negatively impacted by warmer than usual weather in the Northern Hemisphere winter, global LNG imports during the period totalled 88 million tonnes (mt), compared to 79 mt in the first quarter of 2018, or an increase of 11%, GasLog said quoting Poten.In particular, China’s LNG imports totalled 15.3 mt, 24% higher than the first quarter of 2018.Europe’s LNG imports in the first quarter more than doubled to 22 mt, compared to 10 mt in the first quarter of 2018, as lower LNG prices made gas fired power generation more competitive than coal, indigenous gas production declined and LNG gained market share from pipeline imports.

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is expected to have increased by 9%, from 288 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) in 2017 to 313 mtpa in 2018, said GasLog.The Monaco-based owner, operator and manager of LNG carriers said in a stock exchange announcement that China’s LNG imports increased by approximately 16 mtpa, or 41%, to 54 mtpa in 2018, driven mainly by continued coal-to-gas switching in the industrial, commercial and residential sectors.South Korea, Pakistan, Thailand and Mexico also experienced strong growth in LNG imports during 2018. The outlook remains robust, with Wood Mackenzie forecasting compound annual growth in global LNG demand of 6% between 2018 and 2025.This growth is expected to be broad-based…

Heavy lift specialist Roll Group said it has completed its activities on the expansion of the LNG plant at the Elba Island project in Savannah, Georgia."The activities on Elba Island have come to an end for Roll-Lift USA. Mid-January the last equipment was removed, after working more than two years with an extensive fleet of equipment and a large team on the expansion of the LNG plant at the Elba Island Project located in Savannah, Georgia," said a press release.The first challenge to overcome was the low weight limit and deteriorating condition of the only access bridge on to the island. This posed a huge problem for the delivery of the 9,300 poles and 71 process/pipe rack modules.

Global Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) production is on the growth trajectory as the global liquefaction capacity is expected to increase from 396 Mt in 2018 to 434 Mt in 2019.According to the energy consulting service company Rystad Energy, most of the new capacity will be added by the commissioning of US projects.The US capacity expected to grow from 29 Mt to 61 Mt this year as Cameron LNG, Elba Island and Freeport start operations and Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi continue to ramp up.Australia will overtake Qatar as the world’s largest LNG exporter with the ramp up in production in Prelude FLNG and Ichthys, it said.With the new capacity, global LNG production will reach close to 350 Mt this year up 11% YoY which will lead to a looser market.

The liquefied natural gas market is growing every year, but the terminals that ship and receive the fuel are shrinking. The booming sector's next-generation infrastructure is being designed for a emerging-market buyers that want smaller volumes on shorter, more flexible contracts. LNG export terminals, where the gas is liquefied and put on vessels for shipping, have traditionally been massive, custom-built facilities that cost tens of billions of dollars. And so to justify the investment, they have typically required equally massive, long-term supply deals, often lasting a decade or more. Numerous terminal projects on the horizon, by contrast…

A surge in speculative interest in the U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export boom has pushed open interest in natural gas futures to an all-time high, traders said on Thursday. Open interest, which measures the number of contracts outstanding, in the Henry Hub front-month hit 386,826 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday, topping the previous high of 366,383 set in May 2016, according to Reuters data going back to 1990. "There has been a narrative around the market that the LNG exports are going to be the difference maker this winter…

U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)'s latest Short-Term Energy Outlook projects that the United States will export more natural gas than it imports in 2017. The U.S. has been a net exporter for three of the past four months and is expected to continue to export more natural gas than it imports for the rest of 2017 and throughout 2018. The nation’ status as a net exporter is expected to continue past 2018 because of growing U.S. natural gas exports to Mexico, declining pipeline imports from Canada, and increasing exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The U.S. is currently the world's largest natural gas producer, having surpassed Russia in 2009. Natural gas production in the U.S. increased from 55 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2008 to 72.5 Bcf/d in 2016.

ABSG Consulting Inc., a subsidiary of ABS Group of Companies, Inc. (ABS Group), has been contracted by Kinder Morgan, Inc. to develop a Maintenance and Integrity Program for the liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal at Elba Island (Elba LNG Project) near Savannah, Georgia. ABS Group will develop the maintenance and integrity programs for the base plant, balance of plant and the terminal upgrade. The full scope of ABS Group's services cover program development and execution, including project management, strategy development and business processes, asset register, mechanical integrity (MI), preventative maintenance development, spare parts and bill of materials, as well as data asset management services.

Kinder Morgan Inc. will buy out Royal Dutch Shell PLC’s interest in their proposed Elba Liquefaction Co. (ELC ) joint venture in Georgia. Houston-based Kinder Morgan already owns 51% of the ELC joint venture. The firm said it would buy the 49 percent stake that it does not already own in the natural gas joint venture and it raised its dividend. ELC owns the Elba Liquefaction Project, which is proposed to be constructed and operated at the existing Elba Island LNG Terminal near Savannah, Georgia. Kinder Morgan expects to invest an additional $630 million in the joint venture as a result of the transaction, bringing its total investment to $2.1 billion. Construction is expected to begin in the fourth quarter, with initial production to begin in late 2017.

Shell US Gas & Power & Kinder Morgen subsidiary Southern Liquefaction Company to exploit LNG export opportunities. The two companies have announced their intent to form a limited liability company to develop a natural gas liquefaction plant in two phases at Southern LNG's existing Elba Island LNG Terminal, near Savannah, Ga. Subject to various corporate and regulatory approvals, Shell and Kinder Morgan affiliates have agreed to modify EPB’s Elba Express Pipeline and Elba Island LNG Terminal to physically transport natural gas to the terminal and to load the liquefied natural gas (LNG) onto ships for export. “Kinder Morgan is delighted to be working with Shell at Elba Island on this project…

Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Savannah, Ga., investigates vessel grounding on Savannah River. The Coast Guard is investigating the grounding of an 859-foot container ship on the Savannah River, Wednesday. Savannah Pilots reported the UASC Khor Fakkan, an 859-foot container ship, had run aground near Elba Island during inbound transit up the Savannah River at approximately 4 a.m., Wednesday. Coast Guard Sector Charleston established a safety zone with a rescue boat crew from Coast Guard Station Tybee Island, Ga., until the vessel was refloated at approximately 6:40 a.m.

As Cargo, Fuel or both; LNG is emerging as the clear and clean way forward for the maritime industry. The use of LNG as a marine fuel is not new. Vessels trading cryogenic LNG have burned boil-off natural gas in steam boilers for many years as a simple solution to maintaining necessary temperatures and pressures within cargo spaces. The use of the fuel varied according to the size of the ship and a boil off rate ranging between 0.10 to 0.18 percent of the total cargo. As a result of the variable quantities…

As Cargo, Fuel or both; LNG is emerging as the clear and clean way forward for the maritime industry. The use of LNG as a marine fuel is not new. Vessels trading cryogenic LNG have burned boil-off natural gas in steam boilers for many years as a simple solution to maintaining necessary temperatures and pressures within cargo spaces. The use of the fuel varied according to the size of the ship and a boil off rate ranging between 0.10 to 0.18 percent of the total cargo. As a result of the variable quantities…

Ship Owner Mediterranean Shipping Co. S.A. MSC Linzie is the first vessel of a new vessel type developed and designed by Hanjin which adopts the new Panamax length design of 294.05 m. Apparently the design series and Hanjin's well-established reputation in this niche has proved attractive, as the company has, to date, logged orders for 24 ships of the new design. As mentioned above, its length is the maximum for Panama canal, i.e. 294 m. So it has been designed to move flexibly both in Pacific Ocean and in Atlantic Ocean through Panama canal, which is one of the main feature that makes it popular among the operator. This ship offers the maximum intake of 5,060TEU.

Many workboats in the marine industry are called upon in supply or assist roles. The entire offshore vessel industry is based on a supply function to oil and gas drilling operations or the resupply of production platforms. The tugboat industry is most often characterized as small vessels assisting very large ships in docking, undocking and other harbor movements. The growth of these vessel companies and their operations depends on the economic vitality of the larger industry they serve. Right now the hottest new market being served by tugs is in the assistance of very large Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) tankers to dock and undock. As is the case in other marine support operations, the growth of tugs to assist LNG tankers depends on the basic health of LNG transport.