Gas Transportation News

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…

Titan, the independent supplier of low and zero-emission fuels, acquired two small scale LNG carriers – the Seapeak Unikum and Seapeak Vision – from Seapeak, the Canadian gas transportation company formerly known as Teekay LNG Partners. The vessels will be retrofitted to ensure suitable LNG bunkering capabilities, enabling them to both transport and bunker LNG, liquefied biomethane (LBM), and in the longer-term hydrogen derived e-methane (e-LNG).Both sister vessels have a cargo capacity of 12,000 ccbm and measure 152 x 19.8m. The vessels will join Titan’s fleet in March this year.

A spokesperson for Russian energy giant Gazprom said on Monday that a mine destroyer discovered at the Nord Stream 1 offshore gas pipeline in 2015 belonged to NATO. Nord Stream reported on that date in 2015 that a "munitions object" had been cleared by the Swedish armed forces, without giving more detail on the object. Gazprom spokesperson Sergei Kupriyanov told Russian state television on Monday that a NATO device, called a SeaFox, was retrieved from a depth of around 40 metres (125 feet) and made safe.

William P. Doyle, a former U.S. Federal Maritime Commissioner, has been hired to lead the Port of Baltimore as the new executive director of the Maryland Port Administration, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan announced.Currently CEO and Executive Director of the Dredging Contractors of America, Doyle will take the helm at the Port of Baltimore effective July 22, succeeding Jim White, who announced he would step down at the end of 2019. Doyle was appointed by Secretary of the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) Greg Slater…

Five South Korean shipping companies - Korea Line, Pan Ocean, SK Shipping, Hyundai LNG Shipping and H-Line Shipping -  could partner up to secure liquefied natural gas transportation services for Qatar’s LNG production capacity expansion project.Qatar Petroleum is expected to put up shipping contracts for at least 40 LNG carriers by the end of the year for its North Field Expansion project, which aims to increase the nation’s LNG production capacity from 77 million tons to 110 million tons per annum starting in 2024.According to Yonhap, the Qatari state-run company will need an additional 60 LNG carriers for the project.While South Korea’s major shipbuilders are considered the favorites to take the LNG carrier construction orders from Qatar due to their dominant presence in the LNG ship ma

Norwegian shipowner Ocean Yield ASA has agreed to acquire Navigator Aurora, a 37,300 cbm ethylene gas carrier owned by Navigator Gas.According to agreement, the ship will be purchased for a total consideration of USD 69.75 million net of a seller’s credit, with a 13-year bareboat charter to a company 100% owned and guaranteed by Navigator Holdings - Navigator Gas.The vessel is expected to be delivered to the Company during October 2019. Navigator Gas has certain options to acquire the vessel during the charter period. The transaction is subject to final documentation.The vessel, Navigator Aurora, is a 37,300 cbm ethylene gas carrier that was built in 2016.

The class organization American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has granted the approval in principle (AIP) for the LNG Jumbo, two next generation gas carrier designs from the Chinese Jiangnan Shipyard Group.ABS granted AIP for a 91,000m3 Very Large Gas Carrier (VLGC) Panda 91T design and for the “BrilliancE”, a new 99,000 m3 Type B Very Large Ethane Carrier (VLEC) Bluebonnet design.“ABS is proud to support the pioneering work of Jiangnan in the design and delivery of gas carriers. By awarding this AIP, ABS is demonstrating its commitment to promoting innovative concepts which meet market needs and drive safer and more sustainable shipping…

Brazilian state-run oil firm Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) has concluded the sale of gas pipeline system Transportadora Associada de Gás S.A. (TAG) to a group led by France'sEngie SA and Canada'sCaisse De Depot Et Placement Du Quebec (CDPQ).According to a stock exchange annoucement, Petrobras received a total of 33.5 billion reais ($8.69 billion) from buyers on Thursday for the 90 percent stake it had in TAG.Petrobras will continue to use natural gas transportation services rendered by TAG, through contracts already in force between the two companies, with no impacts on its operations and the delivery of natural gas to its clients.This operation is in line with the company's portfolio optimization and improvement of its capital allocation…

French energy giant Total takes over the liquefied natural gas business of Japanese outfit Toshiba's Freeport LNG train tolling agreement and gains $800 million.The French oil and gas company will is paying $15 million for the shares in the Texan assets, the firms said. Toshiba will also pay Total $815 million to take over all the contracts linked to the business, Total added."It includes a 20-year tolling agreement for 2.2 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of LNG from Freeport LNG train 3 in Texas and the corresponding gas transportation agreements on the pipelines feeding the terminal. Train 3 of the Freeport LNG plant is expected to start commercial operations by Q2 2020…

Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping Sovcomflot (SCF Group) said that Yevgeny Primakov (Icebreaker Ice-15) joined the fleet, the final vessel in a series of four new generation IBSV’s, engaged under a long-term time-charter agreement with Sakhalin Energy.The shipping company added that this makes a total fleet of 10 supply and standby vessels servicing Nogliki Base Camp (SEIC and ENL) at Sakhalin island (Sea of Okhotsk).The world’s first Aframax tanker to use LNG as her primary fuel Gagarin Prospect (114,000 DWT) entered service (July) on long-term time charter to Shell. In last October, Gagarin Prospect completed her first commercial voyage using LNG fuel…

Qatar-based maritime transport and logistics company  Qatar Navigation (Milaha) has increased the company’s stake in compatriot liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipping giant Nakilat.Qatar Shipping Company, a subsidiary of Milaha, has entered into an agreement for acquiring the entire stake of Qatar Investment Authority in Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd (Nakilat) representing 5.9% of Nakilat’s share capital.The Sale and Purchase Agreement was conditional on obtaining the consent of the Qatar Financial Markets Authority and the Qatar Central Securities Depositary Company.Abdulrahman Essa Al-Mannai, President and CEO of Milaha Group, announced that Milaha was holding…

French automaker Groupe Renault partners with NEOLINE, designer and operator of cargo sailing ships, to experience a new maritime transport solution and reduce the carbon footprint of the Group’s supply chain.Groupe Renault announced the signing of a 3-year partnership with Nantes start-up NEOLINE to develop a more sustainable maritime transport service powered by wind, and to contribute to the environmental management of its logistics chain while nearly 60% of the Group's parts and vehicles are transported by sea.Jean-Philippe Hermine, Vice President, Strategic Environmental Planning Groupe Renault, stated: “Groupe Renault’s objective is to reduce the environmental impact of each vehicle throughout its entire life cycle, from parts transportation up to delivery and end-of-life processing.

Wärtsilä will provide an integrated cargo handling and fuel gas system for two new liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers for Belgium-based owner Exmar. The 80,000m³ very large gas carriers are being built at HHIC-Philippines (Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction Philippines) in Subic Bay, and will be the first vessels capable of running on LPG, according to Wärtsilä, who secured the order in July 2018.Wärtsilä, which offers ‘LPG as fuel’ as a fully integrated part of the cargo handling system…

Excelerate Energy and Transportadora de Gas del Sur (TGS) have provisionally agreed to jointly assess the viability of an LNG liquefaction and export project at Bahia Blanca in Argentina.Argentina currently imports liquefied natural gas (LNG) through two floating import terminals, particularly during the country's peak winter consumption.The successful development of Argentina's shale gas reserves resulted in a potential excess of natural gas during the summer months. The project aims at studying the technical and commercial viability of liquefying and exporting natural gas during the summer season, allowing a more sustainable development of shale gas resources and reducing Argentina's annual natural gas net import needs.The study is expected to be completed by the end of 2018…

Bureau Veritas has issued a broad swathe of approvals to GTT, expert in membrane containment systems and liquefied natural gas (LNG) technology applications.Bureau Veritas experts have been working with GTT to approve two new containment systems: the Mark III Flex+, an evolution of the Mark III but with a lower boil-off rate (BOR), and the GTT MARS, a containment system developed for LPG carriers that is adaptable to any size of tank or ship.Approval in Principle (AiP) has been provided for a 6…

GLOG, NM, NAP down early Fri by ~5 pct, ~8 pct and ~3 pct, respectively. Lead analyst Noah Parquette sees most shipping sectors recovering, notes that dry bulk and LNG shipping have progressed furthest but crude tankers' risk trough could be extended to early 2019 on high scrapping activity and low orders. Meanwhile, the Baltic Exchange Dry Index has dropped by ~18 pct since the beginning of the year.

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group), one of the world leaders in energy shipping and marine services to offshore oil and gas upstream projects, said that its gross revenue for the full year to 31 December 2017 grew by 3.4% to $1.43 billion. According to the statement, 2017 proved to be one of the worst years for the conventional tanker market in the last quarter of a century, with similar conditions experienced to those seen in 2011 and 1992. Conventional tanker freight rates fell by almost 50 per cent year-on-year, reflecting an oversupply of speculative orders following the 2015 market spike, as well as the effect of sustained production cuts by OPEC and other oil producing nations and a backwardation in the oil trade.

Bahri, a global leader in transportation and logistics, is very optimistic about the future of the oil tanker market and it believes that there will continue to be demand for this market, said Mohammed Al-Sarhan, Vice Chairman of Bahri, who possesses extensive experience in oil and gas, transportation and logistics, and other sectors. He was talking in the annual Bahri Oil Transportation Forum, which was held in Dubai last week. John ‎Angelicoussis, Chairman of Angelicoussis Shipping Group Limited, said: “Markets where the population is high and where there is a very high GDP growth, for instance China and India, are markets that are immensely helping our industry.

NGOs and trade unions in Brazil have criticized the state-run Petrobras’ end-of-life fleet management by dumping toxic ships on South Asian beaches. The Brazilian Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores em Transportes Aquaviários e Aéreos, na Pesca e nos Portos (CONTTMAF) trade union federation and its member SINDMAR (Sindicato Nacional dos Oficiais da Marinha Mercante) have recently criticized the shipbreaking practices of Transpetro, the oil and gas transportation subsidiary of the Brazilian petroleum corporation Petrobras, majority-owned by the State. In the last five years, more than twenty vessels owned by the oil and gas giant have been dismantled on the beaches of India and Pakistan, where shipbreaking activities endanger both workers and the environment.

The world of dredging is an ever changing and endlessly fascinating niche of the global marine industry, an indispensable activity essential to keeping world commerce flowing. For insight on recent trends we visited last month with René Kolman, Secretary General, International Association of Dredging Companies (IADC), for his take on a world of dredging challenges and opportunities. In true Dutch fashion René Kolman is refreshingly forthright. Kolman assumed the mantle of leadership at IADC more than seven years ago, coming to the post from the landscape and garden trade association business.

Russia was now pitching itself as an important transporter of European gas to Asia, reports  Sputnik quoting Danila Bochkarev, a senior fellow at the EastWest Institute in Brussels. The Russian supertanker Christophe de Margerie is en route to South Korea, sailing the Northern Sea Route with a load of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Norway. The shipment is a major step for Russia’s Sovcomflot to enter the global gas transportation market said the report. The Northern Sea Route cuts the travel time from Europe to Asia by a hefty 40 percent and the Christophe de Margerie will cover this distance in just 15 days. Sovcomflot has 128 tankers and 13 LNG transport ships.

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) reported a $6.8 million loss for the first nine months of 2017, citing the adverse impacts of low spot market freight rates in the conventional tanker sectors. “This year has proven to be a very challenging period for the tanker industry and the situation now faced by many conventional tanker ship owners is especially severe,” said Sergey Frank, President and CEO of PAO Sovcomflot. “An oversupply of tonnage and reduced demand, resulting from oil capacity cut-backs led by OPEC…

Shell loads first LNG vessel, using new LNG fuel infrastructure at Gate terminal. The new LNG fuel infrastructure included the construction of a new berth. This new berth has now started operations. The loading of Shell’s chartered LNG vessel, the Coral Methane happened on September 19th. In July 2014, Shell took the Final Investment Decision to buy capacity at the Gas Access to Europe (Gate) terminal, which enabled the investment in new, dedicated liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel infrastructure. The new LNG fuel infrastructure included the construction of a new berth.