Snapshot March 2019 Volume I

NGS’ NG/LNG SNAPSHOT – MARCH 2019, VOLUME I

NATIONAL

City Gas Distribution – Retail PNG / CNG / LNG & AUTO LPG

IOC, HPCL win maximum areas under tenth round of city gas bidding

A total of 12 companies – including Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), Gujarat Gas and Gail Gas — managed to get 50 Geographical Areas (GAs) that were on offer under the tenth round of city gas distribution (CGD) bidding.

The round, launched on November 8, is likely to see investments to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore. Indian Oil, HPCL and a little known consortium of LNG Marketing Pte, Atlantic Gulf & Pacific Company of Manila Inc won the maximum number of nine areas each during the current round, followed by six by Gujarat Gas and four by Gail Gas. On the closing bid date of February 5, at least 225 bids were received for the 50 geographical areas that were on offer under the tenth round of city gas distribution bidding. This included 124 districts (112 complete and 12 part) across 14 states. Other companies who were successful during the round included Indraprastha Gas (three), Torrent Gas (three), Adani Gas (two) and Bharat Gas (two). Three companies — including a consortium of Consortium of Think Gas Investments and Think Gas Distribution — IndianOilAdani Gas and Rajasthan State Gas won an area each. The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) in its 88th Board meeting held on February 26 approved issuance of Letters of Intent (LoI) to the 12 successful entities, said a government statement. As per the commitment made by the various entities in the 50 areas approved for issuance of letters of intent in tenth CGD Bidding Round, 2,02,92,760 domestic PNG (piped natural gas) connections and 3,578 CNG (compressed natural gas) stations for transport sector will be installed. This will be done in a period of eight years up to March 31, 2029. At present, CGD authorisation has been given by PNGRB for 178 geographical areas covering 280 districts (263 complete and 17 part) spread over 26 States and union territories. These cover approximately 50 per cent of India’s population (as per 2011 census) and 35 per cent of its geographical area. In addition, CGD operations are being carried out in five districts, authorisation for which is either under consideration of PNGRB or is sub-judice. With the completion of the current round, CGD would be available in 228 GAs comprising 402 districts spread over 27 States and Union Territories covering approximately 70 per cent of India’s population and 53 per cent of its geographical area. Further, the entities would be authorised to supply natural gas to industrial and commercial units in their respective GAs as per the limits provided in the CGD Authorisation Regulations. The letters of intent for successful entities will be handed over in a function to be held on March 1, 2019 in New Delhi.

https://www.business-standard.com/article/printer-friendly-version?article_id=119022601230_1

show less

CGD conundrum – India

Market-linked pricing of gas, while the right way forward, could have an impact on the burgeoning CGD sector. Over the past few years, CGD has been in the limelight with the government keen to expand the network.

The recent 9th and 10th round of auctions — the largest so far — have seen strong response from many players.The sector’s growth has been predicated on the priority allocation of cheap domestic gas for use as compressed natural gas (CNG) in vehicles and as piped natural gas (PNG) in households. With more than 400 districts (about 70 per cent of the country’s population) likely to have CGD networks over the next two to three years, the demand for domestic gas is expected to increase rapidly. In 2014, only 66 districts were covered by the network. Already, there are complaints of long queues and waiting periods at CNG stations in cities such as Delhi and Mumbai.Unless domestic gas production ramps up, catering to the hugely expanded network across the country in the future might pose a challenge; this will have implications for other consuming sectors too that may have to sacrifice more. Also, with a large portion of potential domestic gas supplies being given pricing freedom, the sourcing cost will likely go up.Whether CGD companies have factored this dynamic in their bids some reported to be quite aggressive needs to be seen in the coming years. Failure by these companies to adhere to contractual commitments could mean supply shortages and consequent penalties and legal quagmires, putting at risk the government’s plans for a gas-based economy.

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/india-must-step-on-the-gas/article26367166.ece[Edited]

show less

Senior level exits in Gujarat Gas as pvt players stoke competition

GSPC arm sees poaching of its employees by start-ups offering fatter pay checks. Public sector Gujarat Gas Limited (GGL), India’s largest gas distribution player, is facing a clear challenge from rising competition in city gas distribution (CGD).

In the last twelve weeks, the CGD arm of the State-run Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) has witnessed at least a dozen top-level exits in favour of new CGD players. With a number of such ‘start-ups’ getting active in the space, the demand for skilled manpower has shot up sending shock-waves through the HR in established players such as GGL.Some of the exits at the levels of vice presidents, assistant VPs and heads of some key functions has forced GGL to rethink its HR policy and put in place measures to contain attrition. The destinations included players like Adani, Torrent, Think Gas, AG&P, Maharashtra Natural Gas, Green Gas among others.Sources revealed that the newly-set up CGD entities have been on an aggressive head-hunt to run the highly-specialised business of gas. “In this fight for experienced talent, private companies are offering up to 50% higher salaries and designations many levels up from the current role.” said a source from the sector, requesting anonymity.Admitting the concerns, GSPC Managing Director, T Natarajan told BusinessLine, “This had to happen following a sudden rise in CGDs. Now that this is a reality as demand for trained manpower has shot up, certain people are interested in moving out. But this is completely based on new opportunities and growth prospects.We are working on and taking up other HR initiatives to retain talent.”Natrajan clarified that the exits will not affect GGL’s operations, “As a GSPC Group, we are able to take care of immediate problems. We have manpower at other group companies and have kept some cushion also.”

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/senior-level-exits-in-gujarat-gas-as-pvt-players-stoke-competition/article26323470.ece

show less

India to push for CNG, LNG cars till electric vehicles become affordable

India is preparing for a major thrust on the development and use of vehicles that run on compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) in yet another effort to curb rising levels of vehicular pollution in its cities.

The government plans to use CNG and LNG as an alternative to both diesel and petrol until automakers develop efficient and affordable electric vehicles, as part of the move, according to the minutes of a meeting of a committee of secretaries in January, which was also attended by officials from the Prime Minister’s Office. The minutes were seen by Mint.The commerce ministry’s department of industrial planning and promotion (DIPP) is working on ways to expedite security and other approvals needed from the Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organisation (PESO) to set up new CNG and LNG retail outlets. The government has begun talks with commercial vehicle makers, through GAIL (India) Ltd, the country’s largest gas distributor, to incentivize the development of such eco-friendly vehicles.The oil ministry is meanwhile partnering other ministries to prepare a road map to open more LNG and CNG pumps on highways and intra-city corridors.Rajiv Kumar Mathur, executive director, corporate affairs and risk management, GAIL (India), said talks are on with commercial vehicle makers to encourage them to build facilities for LNG-based trucks and buses.By creating an infrastructure, companies want to excite people to convert to LNG.Creating the eco-structure will need an investment of around ₹15,000 crore over the next decade. Petronet LNG, for instance, has identified 4,000km of highways (Delhi-Mumbai-Bengaluru-Chennai) where it would initially set up around 20 LNG re-filling outlets. Petronet last year roped in Gujarat to run 20 state buses and Kerala State Road Transport Corporation to run 10 of their buses on LNG.SuvranilMajumdar, project lead, electric mobility, International Finance Corp., termed the move to encourage LNG and CNG vehicles as a short-term strategy and said in the long-term the government should focus on promoting electric buses in cities.“This initiative to push more CNG and LNG vehicles is quite confusing for manufacturers as one should not expect them to invest in hybrid, electric and other alternative fuels at the same time. Now, the state governments have also firmed up policies to acquire electric vehicles within city limits. So, there shouldn’t be a shift in the long-term aim to move to zero emission vehicles,” he said.Companies such as Maruti Suzuki India Ltd and Hyundai Motor India Ltd are focusing on CNG vehicles and have been lobbying with the government to promote such vehicles.Mint had on 6 February reported Maruti Suzuki has asked dealers to bid for licences to open their own CNG dispensing stations to keep pace with the company’s plan of selling about 200,000 CNG cars annually by 2022 by introducing more models that run on the fuel. The government has announced plans to set up 10,000 CNG distribution stations by 2030 to slash the usage of diesel and petrol.

https://www.livemint.com/auto-news/india-to-push-for-cng-lng-cars-till-electric-vehicles-become-affordable-1550603563554.html

show less

CNG and PNG service begins in Patna

A project of GAIL, formerly known as Gas Authority of India Limited, over 1500 homes on Jagdeo Path will begin receiving gas through a network of pipes on Monday. An additional 5000 households will start receiving gas by the end of March when the work on installing PNG connection is completed, GAIL chairperson B C Tripathi said.

The first customer to have the PNG service available at home was Bihar Institute of Technology (BIT) director B K Singh whose residence is on Jagdeo Path.The first CNG fuel station went in service at Auto Care pump near Rukanpura on Bailey Road where Tripathi and legislator from DanapurAsha Devi inaugurated the service in the presence of a number of senior GAIL officials, pump owner Ajit Singh and his staff members.The second service was opened at City Fuel Pump in Patna City.The event, however, was not without a hitch as the station sold only four grams of gas before it developed a technical snag in the system. Women auto owners who had come there to fill their tanks had to return empty-handed. GAIL officials said the problem will be rectified by Monday when the pump will start dispensing CNG to vehicles equipped with necessary requirements.GAIL Deputy General Manager K C Dwivedi said that while consumers will be able to buy CNG at the rate of Rs. 29 per kilogram, starting March 31 it will cost them Rs. 63.47 per kilogram, higher than the rates in Delhi, Lucknow, and Jharkhand.

https://www.patnadaily.com/index.php/news/14150-cng-and-png-service-begins-in-patna.html

show less

Ford India launches Aspire CNG

Ford India has updated the Aspire with a CNG option. The bi-fuel option will be offered in the Ambiente and Trend Plus trims at a price of Rs 6,27,414 (USD 8,783) and Rs 7,12,314 (USD 9,972) ex-showroom respectively.

The Ford Aspire will come equipped with a sequential Italian-designed CNG kit from the factory, supplied and installed by Lovato (Krishna Landi Renzo India Private Limited).The CNG kit is fitted to the 1.2-litre petrol engine which produces 95 bhp and 120 Nm of peak torque and it features a first-in-segment suspension type cylinder which makes for better cargo space. The Ford Aspire’s new three-cylinder engine was introduced to the range in October 2018.MrVinayRaina, executive director for Marketing, Sales & Service Ford India, said “The New Aspire CNG is yet another fuel-efficient and eco-friendly alternative for our value-conscious customers. With maintenance cost as low as just 46 paise per km, the New Aspire CNG will offer great peace of mind to customers, without compromising on performance, safety or space.” (The maintenance cost is equivalent to $0.64 per 100 kms.). Ford is offering what they term a “class leading” two year / 100,000 kilometre warranty. To qualify, the vehicle has to be serviced every 10,000 kilometres and the CNG kits require service after every 20,000 kilometres.

show less

CNG buses roll in West Bengal

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee flagged off the green fleet to be operated by the South Bengal State Transport Corporation. Buses powered by compressed natural gas (CNG) were introduced between Asansol and different parts of the state, including Calcutta.Chief minister Mamata Banerjee flagged off the green fleet to be operated by the South Bengal State Transport Corporation (SBSTC).

The fuel switch is aimed at bringing down rising levels of air pollution across parts of south Bengal.Twenty such buses will connect Asansol to Calcutta, Bankura, Burdwan and other destinations. State government officials said there are plans to introduce CNG bus services across Calcutta. The buses manufactured by Ashok Leyland cost Rs 34 lakh each and were funded by the environment department, sources at Nabanna said. Each bus has 56 seats and a tank capacity of 110kg. The buses will run on coalbed methane, a natural gas, and are likely to vibrate less and be less noisy.Experts said the switch from diesel to CNG would bring a change in the city’s air quality index. The National Green Tribunal recently slapped aRs 5-crore fine on the state government for “failing to comply” with its two-year-old directive to combat air pollution in Calcutta and Howrah.“We plan to bring CNG service to Calcutta. We met officials of a state-owned oil and gas company that has recently bagged the right to bring CNG to Bengal,” a senior SBSTC official said.

https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/west-bengal/cng-buses-roll-in-west-bengal/cid/1685128

show less

New three-wheeler CNG range for Patna by Piaggio

In India, Piaggio Vehicles Pvt Ltd (PVPL), a 100 % subsidiary of the Italian Piaggio Group, has rolled out its Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) powered, water-cooled 395cc engine vehicle range for the Patna, Bihar market.

The launch coincides with the inauguration of the city gas distribution (CGD) system in Patna, aancient city that sprawls alongside the Ganges River. The new Piaggio 395cc three-wheelers include the Apé Auto DX, the industry-first six-foot cargo deck ApéXtra LDX+ and the ApéXtra LDX, the latter being the first of its kind to be water-cooled. Piaggio claims these models offer best-in-class performance in terms of power, pick-up, range and maintenance. Running costs will be substantially lower than regular three-wheelers and will help meet the growing demand for commercial vehicle mobility solutions particularly suited to intra-city travel in Bihar.Two CNG filling stations have so far opened in Patna, one on Bypass Road (West Ramkrishna Nagar, Mithapur) and the other in the locality of Rukanpura. The availability of supply and the renewed emphasis on natural gas fueled vehicles has stimulated a vehicle conversion business in Patna also, using specialised retrofit garages at the filling stations.Launched in India in 1999, Piaggio operates a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at Baramati in Maharashtra, with an installed annual production capacity of over 300,000 three-wheelers and 80,000 four-wheelers.

https://www.ngvglobal.com/blog/new-three-wheeler-cng-range-for-patna-by-piaggio-0221[Edited]

show less

Bokaro to open state’s first CNG station todayJharkhand

The first compressed natural gas (CNG) station of the state will be opened at Indian Oil’s retail outlet at Nayamoad on Saturday. The CNG will be in the from of coal bed methane (CBM),

which is commercially exploited by Oil Natural and Gas Corporation (ONGC) in Telgadia and Gomia areas of Bokaro. CNG at least 40% cheaper but more environment-friendly than petrol and diesel. “As many as 99 CNG stations will come up in Bokaro, Ramgarh and Hazaribag districts in due course. Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) authorisedInidan Oil to supply natural gas in the form of piped natural gas (PNG) to domestic, commercial and industrial sectors and in the form of CNG for transport sector,” VeenaKumari, chief manager (planning and coordination) of Indian Oil said. Indian Oil will invest about Rs 600 crore in city gas distribution (CGD) project in Bokaro, Hazaribag and Ramgarh districts over a period of eight years.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ranchi/bokaro-to-open-states-first-cng-station-today/articleshow/68119017.cms

show less

IGL adding record number of PNG users this fiscal

Indrapastha Gas Ltd is on track to add over 2 lakh new piped natural gas (PNG) connections this fiscal. This will be the highest number of piped gas connections disbursed by the gas retailer in a year.

“We will be closing the current financial year with the highest ever number of new connections added in a year. This year there will be 2.10 lakh new connections. Till now nearly 1.78 lakh new connections have been disbursed and we are adding 900-1,000 connections every day,” Indraprastha Gas MD ES Ranganathan told BusinessLine. As of December 2018, IGL had 10.29 lakh residential consumers and 4,095 industrial or commercial customers, and the company reported a consumption of 403 million standard cubic meters of natural gas by its PNG consumers. Under IGL’s current sales volume mix, CNG accounts for 75% of the total while commercial and industrial units command 11%. Sales to other city gas distribution companies account for 8% cent and residential consumers, just 6%. But IGL has been assured allocation of domestic natural gas from the Centre to meet the entire needs of the CNG and PNG domestic segments. The lower price of domestic gas makes the economics of switching to gas more attractive, driving growth in the domestic segments of CNG and PNG. On an average, domestically produced gas is sold at half the price of imported gas, or even lesser. IGL has also formed a long-term contract for regasified LNG to meet the piped natural gas (industrial and commercial) demand. It is also buying short-term gas from the open market. “On an average, every household consumes 0.34 kg of gas per day. The total incremental gas demand this year will be 60,000 cubic meters per day,” Ranganathan said.

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/companies/igl-adding-record-number-of-png-users-this-fiscal/article26390245.ece

show less

City Gas Distribution – Retail PNG / CNG / LNG & AUTO LPG

Natural Gas / Pipelines / Company News

Policy Matters / Gas Pricing / Others

LNG Development / Shipping

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: NATIONAL

Natural Gas / Pipelines / Company News

Northeast gas grid project likely to get Rs 5k crore from Centre

Given the cost of the pipeline project at around Rs 9,300 crore, the viability gap funding will be more than 50%.The 1,600-km Indradhanush Gas Grid connecting the north-eastern states will get Rs 5,000-crore funding from the Centre.

The Cabinet is likely to clear the proposal soon, according to sources.The gas grid will be developed by a joint venture of GAIL (India), ONGC, Indian Oil, Oil India and Numaligarh Refinery. Earlier this month, Prime Minister NarendraModi laid the foundation stone of the grid at Guwahati. The grid aims to cover and connect the entire north-east with natural gas pipeline and is expected to be completed in the next five years.Given the cost of the pipeline project at around Rs 9,300 crore, the viability gap funding will be more than 50%. In comparison, assistance given to the 2,539-km long Urja Ganga pipeline project connecting the eastern part of the country was 40% of the total cost.The Indradhanush Grid will be connected to the country’s main grid through a pipeline which will bring natural gas from Barauni to Guwahati. The capital city of Assam will then be connected with some of the main cities in the north-east, including Itanagar, Dimapur, Kohima, Imphal, Aizwal, Shillong, Agartala, Silchar, Gangtok and Numaligarh through three pipelines. The project aims to provide piped natural gas to households and liquefied natural gas for vehicles.

https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/northeast-gas-grid-project-likely-to-get-rs-5-crore-from-centre/1499631/

show less

Crisil sees gas demand rising by 3.5% annually till FY23

Gas demand is expected to post a 3.5 percent CAGR between 2018 and 2023 fiscals to 191-193 MMSCMD mainly on the back of the incremental demand expected to come from the fertiliser and city gas distribution (CGD) sectors, says a survey.

According to Crisil, the conversion of naphtha-based urea plants, commissioning of new capacities under the new urea investment policy, and the revival of urea plants are likely to drive gas demand from the fertiliser sector.Also, the regulatory push for CGDs, including priority allocation of domestic gas for compressed natural gas and domestic piped natural gas (PNG) segments, connecting more cities and districts to the gas pipeline infrastructure, along with a ban on polluting fuels such as fuel oil and petcoke in Haryana, Rajasthan and UP will push demand up.Crisil, however, said demand from the power generation sector is expected to be subdued or only marginally improve, owing to accessibility and affordability challenges.The agency also expects that reintroduction of regulatory reforms, along with improved domestic gas supply, is necessary to revive gas demand from the power sector.“It is noteworthy that although gas demand from the power sector rose 3.5 percent to 32.9 MMSCMD in fiscal 2018, from 31.8 MMSCMD in fiscal 2017 (with no policy support), this was most likely because of lower spot prices of LNG,” it said.It can be noted that of late there has been a push to restart the LNG subsidy scheme to supply gas to stranded gas- based power plants.“Along with the subsidy proposal, gas supply from newly commissioned fields of ONGC including the Vashistha+S1 and the Daman fields, among others, would positively impact the sector from fiscal 2020,” it said.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/crisil-sees-gas-demand-rising-by-3-5-annually-till-fy23/

show less

Government returns to old system of awarding oil and gas blocks based on exploration work commitment

The government approved new rules for bidding out oil and gas blocks as it reverted back to a two-decade-old system of awarding areas based on exploration work commitment, granted marketing and pricing freedom to yet to be developed discoveries and allowed ONGC to induct private firms in existing fields.In a bid to boost flagging domestic production

and cut imports, the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister NarendraModi approved “a transparent, investor-friendly and competitive policy framework to accelerate exploration activities and provide impetus to expeditious production of oil and gas,” an official statement said.The new system of awarding blocks is not so prolific areas will replace a two-year-old method of awarding them to companies offering the highest revenue share to the government.The Cabinet approved awarding of exploration blocks in Category-I basins, where commercial production of hydrocarbon has already been established, on the basis of a mix of work commitment and revenue share in the ratio of 70:30, Finance Minister ArunJaitley told reporters here.Exploration blocks in Category II and III basins will be awarded purely based on the exploration work programme.This, he said, was based on the recommendation of a six-member panel, headed by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar, which was formed on directions of Prime Minister NarendraModi last year to give a boost to domestic exploration.

He said there will be no revenue or production sharing in these contracts but the government will get a share in case of windfall gains.The trigger for such a sharing has been fixed at USD 2.5 billion in a financial year from the block.”The policy provides for shorter exploration period and fiscal incentive for the commencement of early production. The contractor will have full marketing and pricing freedom for crude oil and natural gas to be sold at arm’s length basis through a transparent and competitive bidding process.”

https://www.dnaindia.com/business/report-govt-returns-to-old-system-of-awarding-oil-and-gas-blocks-based-on-exploration-work-commitment-2722020[Edited]

show less

PM unveils 1st phase of ‘PradhanMantriUrja Ganga’ gas pipeline

Prime Minister NarendraModi on Sunday dedicated to the Nation the first phase of the Jagdishpur – Haldia&Bokaro – Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline Project (JHBDPL), popularly known as ‘PradhanMantriUrja Ganga’,

and inaugurated the City Gas Distribution (CGD) network in Patna. Prime Minister dedicated and inaugurated the projects in the presence of Bihar Governor LaljiTandon, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister of Law & Justice and Electronics & Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad, Union Minister of State (I/C), Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Giriraj Singh, Minister of State (I/C), Power and New and Renewable Energy R K Singh, Union Minister of State, Rural Development Ram KripalYadav, Union Minister of State, Health & Family Welfare Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Sushil Kumar Modi and other dignitaries.The foundation stone of Phase 1 of ‘PradhanMantriUrja Ganga’ was laid by the Prime Minister on July 25, 2015 in Patna and the section from Phulpur – Dobhi – Barauni with Spurlines to Patna & Varanasi of length 585 Km has been completed. This section passes covers nine districts in Bihar (415 km) and three districts in Uttar Pradesh (170 km). The districts covered in Bihar are Patna, Kaimur, Rohtas, Aurangabad, Gaya, Nalanda, Lakhisarai, Begusarai and Sheikhupura.The total length of JHBDPL pipeline is 2,655 km and covers Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and West Bengal and being further extended from Barauni to Guwahati (Assam) through 729 km pipeline.The Patna CGD project is being executed with a planned expenditure of Rs. 360 crore over the next 5 years and overall Rs 1200 crore over 25 years.

https://www.millenniumpost.in/business/pm-unveils-1st-phase-of-pradhan-mantri-urja-ganga-gas-pipeline-341076

show less

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: NATIONAL

Policy Matters / Gas Pricing / Others

Gas pricing, marketing freedom to help companies draw investments

The government’s decision to free up gas pricing and incentivise incremental output is likely to fire up investments in gas fields and raise production, said company executives and analysts.

The Cabinet granted marketing and pricing freedom to all new gas discoveries whose field development plan (FDP) had yet to be approved. It also introduced fiscal incentive to operational fields for producing more than the current level. This is positive for us as we will be able to fast-track at least three projects that were ready to develop but commercially not viable,” said ONGC chairman ShashiShanker. These three discoveries have a producible reserve of 30 BCM and are expected to have a combined peak production of 10 MMSCMD, he said. For ONGC, the benefit will not be limited to just three discoveries. “We welcome the reform momentum and are looking forward to details of the policy to assess the impact on our production, including in current sites,” said a spokesperson for Vedanta. This is a positive step in terms of encouraging additional activities in the E&P sector and should help accelerate development of discovered resources. We have yet to review the notification, but at this point of time none of BP’s existing developments will be affected by this announcement,” said a spokesperson for BP. BP is a partner of Reliance Industries in several upstream projects in India. Pricing freedom would incentivise production. Producers can easily expect a price that is double that of domestic formula prices,” said K Ravichandran, analyst at credit rating agency ICRA. At present, the domestic formula price for gas is $3.36 per unit. Just about 25 of the total 115 gas discoveries made in blocks auctioned previously are under production as per the official data, and so 90 discoveries can potentially benefit from pricing freedom, Ravichandran said.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/energy/oil-gas/gas-pricing-marketing-freedom-to-help-companies-draw-investments/articleshow/68088944.cms

show less

Hydrocarbon exploration: DGH to be single window for nod to contractors

To fast-track the process of approvals for contractors of hydrocarbon fields, the government has decided to form a committee, headed by the Cabinet secretary, which will monitor the development work undertaken by the contractors right from the beginning.

Also, the directorate general of hydrocarbons (DGH) will act as a single window for contractors for obtaining approvals. In addition, contract terms for blocks in unexplored basins will also be eased.These proposals were cleared by the Union Cabinet on Tuesday while approving changes in the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) and will be notified soon.The Cabinet approved to incentivise contractors to go into unexplored areas wherein they will not have to pay a share of revenue to the government, unless windfall gains are made and require to pay only royalty and other statutory levies. For unexplored areas of producing basins, the bidding will continue to be based on the revenue sharing basis but more weightage will be given to work programme. Also, an upper ceiling of 50% on biddable revenue share has been prescribed apart from marketing and pricing freedom for those new gas discoveries whose field development plans are yet to be approved.The Cabinet also decided to bid out 64 fields of ONGC and 2 fields of Oil India to private companies. These fields contribute 6% to the companies’ combined production in order to step up output. The state-run companies will get lease rentals.The combination of the committee and delegation of responsibility to DGH will be notified separately.For areas under basins in category 2 and 3, which are unexplored areas and prospects have not been proven, the government also plans to change the contract terms. While at present, a contractor needs to go to the DGH’s management committee (MC) to take approvals. “Since there is no revenue sharing, the hassles of going to MC will be reduced. For instance, work programmewill need not be approved by MC which is the process now. They will have freedom to take financial decisions and just an intimation will do. No need for formal approval,” said the official.The Empowered Committee of Secretaries comprising of secretary (petroleum & natural gas), secretary (expenditure) and law secretary will approve the new contracts terms for category 2 and 3.

https://www.financialexpress.com/economy/hydrocarbon-exploration-dgh-to-be-single-window-for-nod-to-contractors/1493910/

show less

Now ONGC can get private help for gas production

The Union cabinet cleared a proposal to allow state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL) to induct private sector partners for production enhancement in their oil and gas blocks.“For production enhancement, bringing new technology, and capital, …

[they] will be allowed to induct private sector partners,” a statement issued after the cabinet meeting said.The objective of the policy is to attract new investment in exploration and production (E&P) sector, it said.“Considering stagnant/declining domestic production of oil and gas, rise in import dependence and decline in investment in E&P activities, the need to bring further policy reforms was felt,” the statement said.It also said ONGC and OIL will prepare enhanced production profile to enhance production from existing nomination fields. Nomination fields are given to the two public sector companies without any competitive bid. The decision will facilitate the government and the state-run explorers to implement recommendations of a high-level committee that proposed to farm-out 97 exploration oil and gas fields from public sector ONGC and OIL to private energy firms, two ONGC officials said requesting anonymity.The Union cabinet also approved a new policy to boost electronics manufacturing by 2025 in the country and to generate 1 crore jobs.“We have a target of $400 billion [Rs 26 lakh crore] turnover by 2025. We want to achieve a 32% growth rate. It will give jobs to 1 crore people. We want to make India manufacturing and export-oriented [country]….,” Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said at a briefing here. He said technologies like artificial intelligence and defence electronics etc. would also be promoted.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/now-ongc-can-get-private-help-for-gas-production/story-XBoVQwI6J45aysxmqXr90K.html

show less

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: NATIONAL

LNG Development / Shipping

ONGC Videsh Limited signs pacts to sell 9.5 mn tonnes of LNG

ONGC Videsh Limited (ONGC Videsh), a wholly owned subsidiary of state explorer ONGC, has struck long-term agreements to sell 9.5 MMTPA of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from their Mozambique Rovuma Offshore Area 1 project,

and will take a final investment decision for the project in the first half of 2019, the state-run explorer said in a statement. Strategically located off the East Coast of Africa, the Mozambique Rovuma Offshore Area 1 project is ONGC Videsh’s key natural gas project. “The project is progressing towards developing initially an onshore LNG plant consisting of two LNG trains with total nameplate capacity of 12.88 MMTPA to support the development of the Golfinho-Atum field located entirely within Offshore Area 1,” ONGC said. “With the approval of the development plan in February 2018, ongoing resettlement implementation activities, site preparation and execution of these sale purchase agreements, the project is poised to take final investment decision in H1 2019,” it added. ONGC and other project developers have entered into an agreement with Tokyo Gas and Centrica LNG Company for sale of 2.6 MMTPA from the start of production until the early 2040s. Other sale agreements include 1.5 MMTPA for 13 years with CNOOC, 2 MMTPA for 13 years with Shell; one MMTPA for 15 years with BPCL, and one MMTPA for 20 years with Indonesia’s Pertamina. ONGC Videsh holds 16% interest in the Mozambique Rovuma Area-1 Offshore Project out of which 10% is held directly by ONGC Videsh and another six per cent interest is held through its 60% shareholding in Beas Rovuma Energy Mozambique Limited (BREML). The remaining 40 per cent in BREML is held by Oil India Limited. Currently, ONGC Videsh has 41 projects spanning across 20 countries.

https://www.newindianexpress.com/business/2019/feb/28/ovl-signs-pacts-to-sell-95-mn-tonnes-of-lng-1944724.html

show less

GSPC seeks LNG cargo for March delivery: sources

India’s Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC) is seeking a liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo for delivery in March, two industry sources said on Friday,

February 15.The cargo is for delivery into the Dahej or Hazira import terminals over March 20 to 30, one of the sources said.Offers were due by Feb. 14 and remain valid until Feb. 15.GSPC has a separate tender seeking 12 cargoes for delivery over April 2019 to March 2020, which is not yet awarded.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/gspc-seeks-lng-cargo-for-march-delivery-sources/

show less

IOCL’s Ennore LNG terminal ready, expects first consignment this month

Work on Indian Oil Corporation Ltd’s ₹5,151 croreLNG import terminal at Ennore has been completed and the facility is likely to receive its first consignment by this month end.

The terminal also has regasification and storage capabilities and LNG road tankers loading facility.Sources in IOCL said that construction of the terminal and jetty facilities was complete and pre-commissioning and commissioning of various systems was in progress. Dredging work for the jetty and the channel that would bring cryogenic ships carrying natural gas in its liquid form is nearing completion. The natural gas would be used as gas-based feedstock in the fertiliser industry. It would replace naphtha.In other industries, it would be used to generate power or run furnace. The regasified LNG would also be supplied to Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd. refinery and fertiliser and petrochemical plants through a 23-km-long pipeline in Manali area from Ennore.Plans are afoot to expand the pipeline network to Sriperumbudur for meeting the requirements of automobile, tyre, glass manufacturing industries.It would be expanded thereafter up to Thoothukudi via Puducherry and Tiruchy. Similarly, the line would be expanded up to Hosur and Bengaluru, the sources said.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/iocls-ennore-lng-terminal-ready-expects-first-consignment-this-month/

show less

Indian Oil buys commissioning cargo of LNG for new Ennore terminal

Indian Oil Corp (IOC) bought a commissioning cargo of LNG for its new Ennore terminal in south India, in a sign that India’s first terminal in the east coast is readying for start-up according to three industry sources.State-owned IOC bought a partial LNG cargo for delivery on

Feb. 25 from commodities trader Gunvor, the sources said.It bought the cargo at about $9.50-9.90 per MMBtu, one of the sources said.The sources declined to comment as they were not authorised to speak with media due to the commercial sensitivity of the matter.

A Gunvor spokesman said the company does not comment on trading matters, while an IOC spokesman could not immediately be reached for comment.

Source: LNG Global

show less

GO TOP

INTERNATIONAL

Natural Gas / Transnational Pipelines / Others

Shell, PetroChina spat holds up biggest Australian coal seam gas project

Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina are at loggerheads over gas sales pricing at their Arrow Energy joint venture, holding up development of Australia’s biggest coal seam gas resource, three industry sources said.PetroChina, the listed arm of China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), is eager to start developing Arrow’s 5 trillion cubic feet (140 billion cubic meters) of gas in the Surat Basin in Queensland to turn around loss-making Arrow Energy, one of its key overseas assets.It is at the mercy of venture partner Shell,

however, as the Anglo-Dutch oil company is also majority owner of Arrow’s biggest potential customer, Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG), a liquefied natural gas plant on an island off Queensland state.“PetroChina, as a 50-percent stakeholder in Arrow, expects to maximise interests from the JV versus QCLNG. But for Shell, it may be thinking of using its operator role at QCLNG to protect its interests,” said a Chinese oil industry executive, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issues.PetroChina’s investment is “already bleeding and the firm wants to cut losses, hoping not to make further bad investment decisions,” the executive said.Shell and PetroChina acquired the Surat gas resource in a A$3.5 billion ($2.5 billion) takeover of Arrow in 2010. They had expected to reach a final investment decision on the Surat project in 2018, with first production around 2020, after the Arrow venture signed a 27-year deal at end-2017 to supply gas from Surat to QCLNG.PetroChina, though, is unhappy with the price in the sales agreement with QCLNG and the technical plan for developing the gas. This is now holding up final approvals, according to three industry sources familiar with the talks, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.Shell Australia Chairman Zoe Yujnovich said on Feb. 13 that it is working through Chinese approval processes right up to senior levels of Beijing’s powerful state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission.Shell still hopes to secure approval in time to deliver first gas in 2021, Yujnovich said.When asked whether gas pricing was in contention, a Shell spokeswoman said that Shell supports both Arrow and QGC in developing the Surat gas project. QGC is the Shell subsidiary holding the company’s stake in QCLNG.The project would help unlock the majority of Arrow’s reserves for both the domestic and export markets, the spokeswoman said.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/shell-petrochina-spat-holds-up-biggest-australian-coal-seam-gas-project/[Edited]

show less

Azerbaijan to become a more significant supplier of natural gas to Southern Europe

Azerbaijan is an important supplier of crude oil and natural gas in the Caspian Sea region, particularly to European markets. Azerbaijan’s exports of natural gas are poised to become a more significant part of the country’s economy.

Azerbaijan produced about 600 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of dry natural gas in 2017 and exported about 210 Bcf, according to EIA’s International Energy Statistics.Azerbaijan is planning to expand its natural gas exports to Europe. European Union (EU) leaders consider connecting Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz natural gas field to Southern Europe to be a step toward the strategic goal of diversifying Europe’s natural gas supply. Southern and Eastern Europe, in particular, have limited supply options for natural gas because of geographic constraints and infrastructure limitations.The Trans-Balkan pipeline, which supplies Russian natural gas to the Balkan countries and Turkey through Ukraine, is one of the region’s only existing supply routes. In 2017, the Trans-Balkan pipeline transported about 600 Bcf of natural gas to the EU border in Romania, according to the International Energy Agency. Although the proposed Azerbaijani volumes—about 565 Bcf—will bring a smaller amount of natural gas to Southern Europe, they could help mitigate potential natural gas supply disruptions by providing another option to satisfy regional natural gas demand.The Shah Deniz field, which is about 40 miles southeast of Baku in the Caspian Sea, contains most of Azerbaijan’s natural gas. In 2017, the field produced about 360 Bcf of natural gas and about 19 million barrels of condensate. The main markets for Shah Deniz gas have been Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey.

In mid-2018, the field’s second stage of development, Shah Deniz 2, came online and began delivering natural gas to Turkey, which EIA includes in its definition of Southern Europe. Shah Deniz 2 will also add 38 million to 44 million barrels of condensate production capacity per year.

The natural gas produced at Shah Deniz 2 will flow west through an expanded pipeline network known as the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC). Turkey started receiving Shah Deniz 2 natural gas in 2018 through the South Caucasus Pipeline Expansion (SCPX), which runs from Azerbaijan to the Georgia-Turkey border.The 1.5 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), which runs from the Georgia-Turkey border and is being extended to the Turkey–Greece border, was completed in June 2018 and has provided additional natural gas capacity into Southern Europe. Volumes of natural gas shipped via TANAP reached 0.1 Bcf/d in 2018 and are expected to increase to 0.2 Bcf/d in 2019. The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which is slated to run from the Turkey-Greece border to Italy, is expected to be completed in 2020.Of the expected 565 Bcf of annual natural gas production at Shah Deniz 2, Turkey has contracted for 211 Bcf, and European markets have contracted for the remainder. Some deliveries will go to Greece, Bulgaria, and potentially Albania, and the rest will be delivered to the Italian national transmission network before possibly flowing north to Central Europe.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/azerbaijan-to-become-a-more-significant-supplier-of-natural-gas-to-southern-europe/

show less

Europe set for greater competition between pipeline gas, LNG: BP

Europe is likely to see increased competition between pipeline gas supplies and LNG imports in the coming decades while domestic production continues its precipitous decline, BP said in its latest Energy Outlook.

In its annual outlook, BP also said it sees global gas demand growing by 1.7%/year to 2040 under its “Evolving Transition” (ET) scenario to a total of 5.37 Tcm, up from a forecast of 1.6%/year in last year’s report.BP’s ET scenario is broadly in line with its base-case scenarios in previous reports, which assume that government policies, technology and social preferences continue to evolve in a manner and speed seen over the recent past.“In the ET scenario, European gas production declines by 40%,” BP said.Including Norway, gas output is set to drop from around 245 Bcm in 2020 to just 159 Bcm in 2040, it said.This, BP said, will “cause Europe’s import dependency to increase to around three-quarters in 2040.”That compares with import dependency of some 50% currently.“Europe’s existing infrastructure means it has the capacity to increase substantially its imports of either LNG or pipeline gas, especially from Russia,” it said.BP said there would be greater competition between the two, though the ease of transportation means pipeline gas has a “marked cost advantage” over LNG. BP said “Europe remains a key market, both as a ‘balancing market’ for LNG supplies and a key hub of gas-on-gas competition between LNG and pipeline gas.” Global LNG volumes are set to expand substantially, leading to a more competitive, globally integrated gas market, BP said.In the ET scenario, LNG trade more than doubles, reaching almost 900 Bcm in 2040 up from around 400 Bcm in 2017. “In terms of who is leading the charge in LNG exports, we see the US and Qatar emerging as the dominant sources,” he said.

Those two countries alone are set to account for around 40% of all LNG exports by 2040, BP said.

Asia remains the dominant market for LNG imports, although the pattern of imports within Asia shifts, with China, India and “Other Asia” overtaking the more established markets of Japan and South Korea, and accounting for around half of all LNG imports by 2040.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/europe-set-for-greater-competition-between-pipeline-gas-lng-bp/

show less

Natural Gas / Transnational Pipelines / Others

Global LNG Development

Natural Gas / LNG Utilization – Roadways – E-mobility

LNG as a Marine Fuel / Bunkering/ LNG Shipping

Technological Development for Cleaner and Greener Environment Hydrogen & Bio-Methane

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: INTERNATIONAL

Global LNG Development

Fight against pollution to lift LNG demand, says Shell

Company expects global liquefied natural gas trade to rise 11% in 2018 as China increases consumption in fight against carbon emissions. Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) trade is set to rise 11% this year as China leads a global drive to reduce pollution and tackle carbon emissions,

Royal Dutch Shell says in an annual LNG report. Shell’s forecasts, which see LNG demand rising to 354-million tons this year and to 384-million tons in 2020, reflect a burgeoning industry with new production facilities opening in Australia, the US and Russia and more countries becoming importers by constructing receiving terminals. Shell, the world’s largest buyer and seller of LNG as well as a major producer, said that China is set to double its LNG consumption by 2035 after it accounted for over half of the growth in traded volumes last year. Natural gas is expected to be the fastest-growing source of energy in the coming decades, displacing coal in power plants and heavy industries. LNG, for which natural gas is chilled to minus 160°C, allows transportation of the fuel from gas fields to demand centres. Asia dominates the market with Japan remaining the top buyer. China became the second largest in 2017. Shell is also betting on a rapid increase in demand for LNG in the ground transport and marine sectors. Global LNG trade rose by 27 MMTPA last year, with Chinese demand growth accounting for 16 MMT of that. Due to the uneven progress of developing liquefaction-export facilities on the one hand and regasification-import terminals on the other, many analysts see the global market becoming oversupplied if not this year then next year. But most, including Shell, also see a supply crunch around the mid-2020s because, at the moment, there are not enough liquefaction facilities being planned, financed and built. However, Shell said the duration of contracts signed last year had on average more than doubled to 13 years. Spot trade amounted to 1,400 cargoes in 2018, which was close to 30% of the global market compared with 25% in 2017, Shell said. Spot trade, the buying and selling of cargoes for immediate delivery, signals a more flexible, mature market. Shell sold 77-million tons of LNG in 2018, about 22% of the global market share, and produced about 35-million tons.

https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/companies/energy/2019-02-25-fight-against-pollution-to-lift-lng-demand-says-shell/

show less

Global LNG-Asian prices drop to 17-month low on tepid demand

Asian spot prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) continued their downward spiral this week, hitting a 17-month low as the market moved further away from the peak winter demand period and inventories remained high in the region.Spot prices for March delivery to Asia LNG-AS fell to $6.50 per MMBtu

this week, down 20 cents from the previous week to their lowest since Sept. 8, 2017, trade sources said.April prices are estimated at about $6.30 per MMBtu, the sources said.Demand in China remained tepid as many factories there were still shut for Lunar New Year celebrations, trade sources said. The Lunar New Year fell on Feb. 5 and 6 this year, but the festival typically lasts for about two weeks.While temperatures in Beijing and Shanghai dipped below normal briefly, they are expected to get warmer next week, weather data from RefinitivEikon showed.Several unplanned outages failed to lift prices, indicating just how weak demand is currently, trade sources said.Loadings of LNG cargoes at Malaysia’s Bintulu export plant, operated by Petronas, were delayed this week due to lower production, sources have said.But the delay was due to minor glitches at the plant which have since been resolved, one of the sources said.Woodside Petroleum’s Pluto LNG facility has also resumed full output after a brief outage.Natural gas flows to U.S. LNG export terminals were expected to increase in coming days after collapsing to their lowest level in almost a year as fog clears along the U.S. Gulf Coast.Analysts said the drop was due to maintenance work at the LNG terminals and pipelines feeding them, and fog, which had forced several vessels to drop anchor in the Gulf of Mexico.Indonesia’s Pertamina sold four cargoes it had offered for March 2019 to early 2020 from its Bontang plant, although price and buyer details could not immediately be confirmed.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/global-lng-asian-prices-drop-to-17-month-low-on-tepid-demand/

show less

Can any country dethrone Qatar as top LNG exporter?

The Lunar New Year fell on Feb. 5 and 6 this year, but the festival typically lasts for about two weeks.While temperatures in Beijing and Shanghai dipped below normal briefly, they are expected to get warmer next week, weather data from RefinitivEikon showed.Several unplanned outages failed to lift prices, indicating just how weak demand is currently, trade sources said.Loadings of LNG cargoes at Malaysia’s Bintulu export plant, operated by Petronas, were delayed this week due to lower production, sources have said.But the delay was due to minor glitches at the plant which have since been resolved, one of the sources said.Woodside Petroleum’s Pluto LNG facility has also resumed full output after a brief outage.Natural gas flows to U.S. LNG export terminals were expected to increase in coming days after collapsing to their lowest level in almost a year as fog clears along the U.S. Gulf Coast.Analysts said the drop was due to maintenance work at the LNG terminals and pipelines feeding them, and fog, which had forced several vessels to drop anchor in the Gulf of Mexico.Indonesia’s Pertamina sold four cargoes it had offered for March 2019 to early 2020 from its Bontang plant, although price and buyer details could not immediately be confirmed.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/global-lng-asian-prices-drop-to-17-month-low-on-tepid-demand/

show less

Thailand’s PTT plans up to $11 bln investment in LNG and infrastructure

Thai energy company PTT Pcl plans to invest up to 354.7 billion baht ($11.3 billion) over the next five years to boost its natural gas portfolio and energy infrastructure, a senior executive said.PTT plans to invest 167.1 billion baht from 2019 to 2023, of which 44% will be allocated to expand its gas business and firm up infrastructure,

ArawadeePhotisaro, Vice President for Corporate Strategy, told reporters at a news conference.“We want to become a global LNG portfolio player … and build an LNG value chain,” Arawadee said, adding that its upstream arm, PTT Exploration and Production Pcl, would acquire assets while other units would focus on building receiving terminals, liquefaction and regasification plants.Natural gas is becoming a primary energy source for Thailand because it is easier to transport, cleaner and has lower costs, she added.PTT also set aside an additional 187.6 billion baht to invest in new technologies and expand its core business should opportunities arise, Arawadee said.“We have to build energy security for the country and also add value to from our petrochemical products,” she said.Other investment areas include expansion of petrochemical products capacity and its electricity business.

PTT on Thursday reported net profit of 119.7 billion baht for 2018, down 11.5% from a year earlier. Gas accounted for about a third of operating income, bringing in 76 billion baht, up 12.8%.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/thailands-ptt-plans-up-to-11-bln-investment-in-lng-and-infrastructure/

show less

Russia’s Far East LNG hub may become price benchmark for Asia-Pacific

The largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer in Russia, Novatek, plans to build an LNG terminal on the Kamchatka Peninsula to boost supply to the fast-growing Asian markets.“If we dream for a while, then the hub we plan in Kamchatka

with a capacity of 120 MMT may also become one of gas sales indices in the Asia-Pacific,” said Novatek’s Chief Executive Officer Leonid Mikhelson.He added that gas pricing will hopefully be less pegged to oil prices.Novatek plans to develop the LNG throughput terminal project on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia’s Far East, close to the Asian markets. With a capacity of 20 million tons per year, the project is scheduled for commissioning in 2022-2023.According to Mikhelson, Novatek forecasts significant growth in the LNG market in the midterm. The company estimates that LNG consumption volumes may more than double to 700 million tons in 2030.The Russian firm has recently signed a preliminary agreement with Japan’s Saibu Gas, under which the companies will consider potential cooperation in entering the end-consumer LNG market in Asia.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/russias-far-east-lng-hub-may-become-price-benchmark-for-asia-pacific/

show less

Warm winter pushes LNG to 17-month low in biggest market

Liquefied natural gas prices in North Asia, the world’s biggest market for the fuel, have slumped to the lowest in 17 months as the peak demand season ends with a whimper.

Benchmark LNG Japan/Korea Marker futures have tumbled 31% since the start of the year as a milder-than-normal winter left buyers in Japan, South Korea and China with brimming stockpiles and little need to dip into the spot market. At the same time, a flurry of prompt supply, from Australia to Indonesia, has kept the market well supplied.Nearly all end-users have moved onto buying April cargoes, officially marking the end of the winter peak-procurement season and dashing any bullish hopes for a last-minute supply crunch. Analysts at Wood Mackenzie see spot prices extending declines to bottom at $5.80/MMBtu in June before crawling back to $7.40 by December.“Warm weather has meant that Japanese and particularly South Korean storage levels are still at very high levels,” said Nicholas Browne, an analyst at Wood Mackenzie. Going forward, “we expect to see a decline in Japanese and South Korean demand this year due to new coal capacity and restarting nuclear.”Benchmark LNG Japan/Korea Marker futures for April delivery declined 3.1% on Thursday to $6.25/MMBtu, the lowest for front-month prices since September 2017.Recently in the physical market, Japan’s Tohoku Electric Power bought a cargo on a delivered basis for April 1-5 at between $6.20 and $6.30/MMBtu. BP sold to Gunvor Group on the Platts Market-on-Close trading window Thursday a cargo for delivery to north Asia during April 15-17 at $6.20.The LNG slump comes as crude oil has been on a tear, with Brent futures jumping 24% this year. LNG spot prices, which in the past tracked closely to oil because most of the region’s purchases are indexed to crude, are about 9% the price of Brent, the lowest in nearly three years.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/warm-winter-pushes-lng-to-17-month-low-in-biggest-market/

show less

Australia’s east coast LNG plants unlikely to ever hit full capacity -study

Australia’s three east coast LNG plants are unlikely to ever run at their combined full capacity of 25.3 MMTPA as there is not enough gas to feed them and meet local demand, a study released on Thursday, February21 said.The three plants –

Queensland Curtis LNG, Australia Pacific LNG and Gladstone LNG – were the world’s first LNG exporters to use coal seam gas rather than gas from conventional fields.But the wells they source their gas from in Australia’s Surat and Bowen basins in Queensland state have turned out to be less productive than expected.As a result, the three plants – each with two processing units – have been running below capacity, operating at average 82% in 2018.“Unfortunately, there are serious headwinds coming and the outlook is less rosy as the industry over-reached by building three projects of six trains,” EnergyQuest CEO Graeme Bethune said in a statement.QCLNG, run by Royal Dutch Shell averaged 87% capacity, and GLNG, run by Santos, only 65%, EnergyQuest, an industry consultancy, said.In a detailed study of government and company drilling and production data and reserves booked at coal seam gas (CSG) prospects and licenses, it found that only 56% of booked proven and probable reserves had shown any commercial productivity.“The emerging and critical shortages are resulting from the fact the CSG LNG projects were sanctioned on ambitious estimates of proved and probable (2P) reserves, not proven reserves (1P) that underpin conventional LNG projects,” Bethune said.He predicted that by 2025 at least two trains would have to be shut to keep four trains running at full capacity, which would reduce medium-term exports to around 17 MMTPA, down from about 21 MMT in 2018.About 70% of exports go to China, 16% to South Korea and 9% to Japan.Exacerbating the problem, the producers have come under pressure to step up gas sales into the domestic market, with supply in Australia’s southeast falling as ageing offshore fields dry up and as states restrict drilling onshore.

Trump inclined to extend China trade deadline. The three projects supplied about 25% of Australia’s eastern demand in 2018.“With dwindling production from southern gas fields, the political pressure on the LNG producers to divert gas to the domestic market is likely to intensify,” Bethune said.

Source: LNG Global

show less

Anadarko signs 20-year LNG deal with Indonesia’s Pertamina

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. said that all co-venturers of the Mozambique LNG1 Company Pte. Ltd. signed an accord to sell one million tons per year of liquified natural gas to Indonesian state oil company Pertamina

for 20 years.”Indonesia is expected to be one of the fastest growing natural gas markets in Asia and Pertamina, the national energy company of Indonesia, will play a key role in meeting Indonesia’s long-term energy needs,” Mitch Ingram, Anadarko executive vice president for international, deepwater and exploration, said in a news release.”The Anadarko-led Mozambique LNG project is well positioned to make a sanctioning decision in the first half of this year, as we remain on track to complete the project financing process, secure the necessary approvals, and have executed a sufficient volume of long-term Sales and Purchase Agreements, which now total more than 9.5 MMTPA,” Ingram said.Houston-based Anadarko is developing Mozambique’s first onshore LNG facility consisting of two initial LNG trains with a total nameplate capacity of 12.88 MMTPA to support the development of the Golfinho/Atum field located entirely within Offshore Area 1.Anadarko has a 26.5% working interest. Co-venturers include ENH Rovuma Área Um, S.A. with 15%, Mitsui E&P Mozambique Area1 Ltd. with 20%, ONGC Videsh Ltd. with 10%, Beas Rovuma Energy Mozambique Limited with 10%, BPRL Ventures Mozambique B.V. with 10%, and PTTEP Mozambique Area 1 Limited with 8.5%.

Source: LNG Global

show less

China to build new LNG terminals in southern Guangdong

China will build new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals and expand the capacity of existing terminals in its Greater Bay area, China’s cabinet said, according to a report by official news agency Xinhua.Beijing wants to turn Hong Kong, Macau

and nine neighbouring cities in southern Guangdong province into an economic powerhouse dubbed the Greater Bay Area.Under new guidelines for development of the area approved by the cabinet, the aim is to build a low-carbon and efficient energy system.China will accelerate construction of large-scale oil reserve sites and consider launching a futures exchange for carbon emissions trading in Guangzhou.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/china-to-build-new-lng-terminals-in-southern-guangdong/

show less

Commonwealth LNG sees Euro Demand for LA Gas Terminal

Commonwealth LNG has received commitments from European buyers to take almost half of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) from its planned 8.4-million-tonnes-per-year export terminal in Louisiana, Chief Executive Officer Paul Varello said.

The Commonwealth project is one of more than 10 LNG export terminals under development or construction in the United States along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico to take advantage of soaring demand for the supercooled fuel amid booming gas production.”We have to work hard to get closer to the full 8 million tonnes in heads of agreements to allow us to feel good about getting 6 million tonnes in final agreements,” he said, because prospective buyers are overcommitting to projects.Varello said the company will process natural gas into LNG at the terminal at “well below” $2.50 per MMBtu for buyers signing 20-year supply contracts.The company expects to make a final investment decision by the third or fourth quarter of next year after getting final environmental approvals and aims to begin shipping LNG in 2024.Varello, who is in Tokyo pitching LNG to importers in the country while attending an industry conference, said Japanese buyers were reluctant to sign off-take agreements.The resistance to signing long-term contracts is coming because electric utilities are getting nuclear reactors back online after prolonged shutdowns following the 2011 Fukushima disaster and the rising use of renewables, Varello said.The Commonwealth project is one of many that could be approved this year and next, as worldwide consumption of LNG is expected to more than double to 550 million tonnes a year by 2030.U.S. gas production has soared to new records, bolstered by shale production, increasing the need for export capacity to absorb the supply.Energy companies are expected to make final decisions on projects that could add more than 60 million tonnes per year of LNG capacity this year, a record.Qatar Petroleum and Exxon Mobil Corp said earlier this month they will proceed with a $10 billion project that will expand a LNG export plant in Texas.

https://www.aogdigital.com/pipelines/item/8869-commonwealth-lng-sees-euro-demand-for-la-gas-terminal

show less

Gazprom grabs record share of Europe gas market despite challenges

Russia’s Gazprom increased its share of the European gas market last year despite a rising challenge from imports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG), company officials told investors in Hong Kong.

The meeting came a day after the surprise departure of deputy chief executive Alexander Medvedev who has spearheaded Gazprom’s export efforts for the past 16 years.Gazprom’s share of the European gas market rose to a record high 36.7 percent last year from 34.7 percent in 2017, the company said.This, despite calls from the European Commission for EU states to diversify away from Russian energy in the wake of Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.Gazprom has also faced a rise in imports of U.S. LNG into Europe, which saw a near fivefold increase this winter.The company would aim to retain a market share in Europe of no less than 35 percent in coming years, she said. Europe accounts for around two-thirds of Gazprom’s gas sales.Gazprom’s average gas price in Europe was $245.50 per 1,000 cubic metres last year and it expects a price of $230-$250 this year, Burmistrova said.In Russia, Gazprom competes with oil producer Rosneft and private gas firm Novatek. Both have long lobbied for the right to export gas by pipeline but for now are limited to LNG sales.On Tuesday, Novatek boss Leonid Mikhelson met Russian President Vladimir Putin, telling him that Novatek plans to raise its 2030 LNG output target to 70 MMT from 57 MMT in a year or two – putting it on par with top producer Qatar.Novatek last year launched its $27 billion Yamal LNG plant, which can produce 16.5 MMTPA.As for Gazprom, it plans to build a third line at its Sakhalin-2 plant in Russia’s Far East in 2023-2024, Burmistrova said.

The company is looking to account for 25 percent of China’s gas imports by 2035, a management committee member told the investors in Hong Kong.It plans to supply China via the 38 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year Power of Siberia pipeline. China is set to become Gazprom’s second largest market after Germany, where it sold a record 53.4 bcm of gas last year.

Source: LNG Global

show less

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: INTERNATIONAL

Natural Gas/LNG Utilization – Roadways – E-mobility

Spain’s MOVES Plan puts brakes on NGV support

In Madrid on February 15, Spain’s Council of Ministers approved a proposal of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition which regulates the incentive program for efficient and sustainable mobility (MOVES Program).

Unlike the previous two iterations and despite a plea from SEDIGAS, the Spanish natural gas association, for greater recognition of the role of renewable gas in reducing transport-related emissions, most natural gas vehicles have been excluded from the incentive scheme.In one sense, this can be seen as a compliment for the natural gas vehicle industry in Spain, which the government says now stands on an equal footing with conventional players. But that is on price alone; Spain has about 14,300 natural gas vehicles compared to more than 27 million vehicles overall – from that perspective equalization is an unhelpful description. It fails to recognise that while great progress has been made, natural gas for transportation is still finding its feet in Spain. Furthermore, incentives are not about making vehicles cheaper, they are about building market mass and supporting fuel alternatives to drive down emissions.The Decree says vehicles M1, N1, M2 and M3 powered by Natural Gas are excluded from the aid. Class N2 (light trucks or lorries) and N3 (trucks) vehicles powered by Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) or Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), including bi-fuel and dual-fuel vehicles, are still eligible for support. However, the amount of funding set aside for that support has been drastically reduced.

https://www.ngvglobal.com/blog/spains-moves-plan-puts-brakes-on-ngv-support-0220[Edited]

show less

CNG station for Class 8 heavy trucks will open soon in Ontario, Canada

Envoy Energy Fuels Inc. and Truk-King Logistics Inc. have started construction on a public CNG station in Fort Erie, Ontario.

The CNG cardlock station, located along Ontario’s QEW highway and just minutes from the U.S.-Canada Peace Bridge border, will include four fast-fill lanes for heavy-duty vehicles and two dedicated lanes for filling large capacity tube trailers for Envoy Energy’s mobile CNG refueling operations. It has the capacity to fuel Class-8 trucks in approximately 5 minutes and over 200 trucks each day. The opening of the station is planned for April 2019.

Truk-King was the first third-party carrier fleet in Ontario to adopt CNG when they switched one third of their fleet to CNG in early 2018 and plans to have its entire fleet of Class-8 trucks running on natural gas by the end of 2019. The station will provide Truk-King access to a reliable source of CNG fuel while removing emissions control issues with diesel engines and reducing their fuel costs and overall carbon footprint.When completed, the CNG station will be strategically located for heavy duty trucks along major shipping corridors while providing easy-access and fast-fill capabilities for use by third-party fleets. The collaborative team members for this station include ComTech Energy, Enbridge Gas Inc. and Natural Resources Canada.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c4-stations/canada-cng-station-for-class-8-heavy-trucks-will-open-soon-in-ontario/

show less

First liquefied natural gas mobile unit starts operations in South America

The HAM Group designed, manufactured and put into operation the first LNG mobile station in South America. Located in Trujillo, Perú, the unit -also known as Micro Refueler- was commissioned by Quavii (brand of Gases del Pacífico) and will allow the refueling of heavy cargo vehicles and passenger transportation.

The station was launched at the beginning of February.The Micro Refueler has a cistern made by Vakuum, a company of the HAM Group. This cistern, with an internal and external body of stainless steel, has a capacity of 25m3 of LNG, which will allow to refuel a total of 30 vehicles, thanks to its modern system with integrated dispenser. The unit has the highest level of automation and a built-in payment management system, which makes it a unique equipment in the world.Before the launch, Vakuum specialists trained the different professionals in charge of the operation of the station. On February 7, the first refueling was carried out, with the presence of Osinermin (government’s agency that manages energy and mining investment) and members of the Ministry of Hydrocarbons. The first refueling was made with a Scania G410 tractor, allowing to satisfactorily verify all the service features of the LNG mobile unit.In mid-February, the Micro Refueler unit was presented to the local press and in the next few months Quavii will incorporate new LNG trucks, both from Scania and from other manufacturers.With the Micro Refueler, HAM has collaborated with Quavii to take the first step in the implementation of the Green Corridor project, which aims to encourage the construction of LNG stations along the entire northern coast of Peru. In recent years HAM has opted for its development in Peru through its subsidiary HAM Peru and is considering in its strategic plan the expansion to other Latin American countries.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c4-stations/south-americas-first-liquefied-natural-gas-mobile-unit-starts-operations/

show less

EuroCementplans 1000 KAMAZ natural gas trucks

EuroCement group, an international industrial Holding company and Russia’s leading producer of construction materials, has concluded a cooperation agreement with Russian truck manufacturer KAMAZ,

that will lead to the acquisition of one thousand natural gas powered KAMAZ trucks.The agreement was concluded at the Russian Investment Forum in Sochi, signed by Sergey Kogogin, General Director of KAMAZ PJSC, and Mikhail Skorokhod, President of EuroCement group.Effective transportation of construction materials to consumers is an important component for successful implementation of the national project “Housing and Urban Environment” within which by 2024 in the country 120 thousand sq.m of housing will be annually constructed.The EuroCement group will be engaged in building the infrastructure for the vehicles being purchased together with Gazprom Gas Engine Fuel LLC, with which KAMAZ PJSC also has long-term cooperation and successful experience in implementing such projects.

https://www.ngvglobal.com/blog/eurocement-plans-1000-kamaz-natural-gas-trucks-0215[Edited]

show less

Record order of 37 Iveco Crossway NP in France’s Dracénie Region

that will lead to the acquisition of one thousand natural gas powered KAMAZ trucks.The agreement was concluded at the Russian Investment Forum in Sochi, signed by Sergey Kogogin,

General Director of KAMAZ PJSC, and Mikhail Skorokhod, President of EuroCement group.Effective transportation of construction materials to consumers is an important component for successful implementation of the national project “Housing and Urban Environment” within which by 2024 in the country 120 thousand sq.m of housing will be annually constructed.The EuroCement group will be engaged in building the infrastructure for the vehicles being purchased together with Gazprom Gas Engine Fuel LLC, with which KAMAZ PJSC also has long-term cooperation and successful experience in implementing such projects.

https://www.ngvglobal.com/blog/eurocement-plans-1000-kamaz-natural-gas-trucks-0215[Edited]

show less

Venezuela gives a boost to the development of NGV infrastructure

Autogas de Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA) and the government of Vargas have opened the first natural gas service station in the state. The refueling facility, located in Catia La Mar parish, will be able to supply local public transport system “Bus Vargas”,

as well as commercial fleets and private vehicles.In its initial phase, the CNG station will have the capacity to supply 35 vehicles per day and will be managed by the Vargas state government with the aim of improving the transportation service and facilitating the shuttle of residents to their destination.On the other hand, the Manager of Autogas Domingo Castillo highlighted the investment of the national government and PDVSA in quality technology to guarantee the operation and efficiency of the CNG station. “We have state-of-the-art equipment and highly qualified personnel to operate this and all natural gas outlets in the country,” he said.The Venezuelan government and the country’s main industry are working to promote the use of natural gas as an alternative fuel and maximize its social, economic and environmental benefits for the country.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c4-stations/venezuela-gives-a-boost-to-the-development-of-ngv-infrastructure/

show less

HCM City targets 75% of buses with clean fuel by 2020

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport aims to have 75% of the new buses running on clean fuel by the end of 2020.Under a plan to buy 1,680 new buses for the 2018-20 period, the city expects to have more than 1,000 of the buses running on compressed natural gas (CNG) by the end of 2020.

However, the plan has faced insufficient subsidies, lack of financial support from the city, and setbacks in building CNG fueling stations, according to the department.Because of the lack of investment in CNG fueling stations and attractive subsidy incentives, only 428 CNG buses were operating as of the end of last year.CNG vehicles cost 20 per cent more than normal buses, according to bus companies.For instance, the price of an 80-seat bus using gasoline is about VNĐ2.4 billion (US$103,437), while a CNG bus of the same size costs VNĐ2.75 billion.The city has yet to implement a subsidy incentive for environmentally friendly vehicles.NguyễnVănThảo, director of Transport Cooperative No 15, said the subsidy level for CNG buses was the same as that of gasoline-fueled vehicles. The city’s four CNG filling stations are all located far from the city centre (in ThủĐức, TânBình, BìnhChánh districts, and District 12), leading to increased operational costs for bus operators and more time for bus refueling.In addition, transport operators must pay 30 per cent of the cost to buy a bus, and for the remaining 70 per cent, they must take out bank loans with most of the interest rate subsidised by the city, according to Thảo.The city needs a total of 19 CNG filling stations to accommodate the rising number of CNG buses in the coming years, according to Trung. The city has thus far identified 11 possible locations for the stations.In addition, the transport department has urged the State-owned oil group (PetroVietnam) to stabilise the prices of CNG supplied to public transport companies in the city. It wants PVN to keep CNG prices at 66 per cent of that of diesel.HCM City aims to replace about 3,120 buses with new buses in the 2018-2020 period.

https://elevenmyanmar.com/news/hcm-city-targets-75-of-buses-with-clean-fuel-by-2020-asianewsnetwork[Edited]

show less

SNAPSHOT: INTERNATIONAL

LNG as a Marine Fuel/Bunkering/ LNG Shipping

Repsol will supply Brittany Ferries’ LNG-fueled ferry in UK-Spain route

Brittany Ferries has signed an agreement with Repsol for the delivery of LNG to its Spanish operations. A letter of intent between the two companies provides the basis for the long-term supply of LNG and

key shoreside infrastructure to the new LNG-powered cruise-ferry Salamanca, which is scheduled to enter service in 2022. Under the agreement, Repsol will install a fixed quayside LNG storage and supply system in one of Brittany Ferries’ two Spanish ports, Santander or Bilbao. Repsol will then supply LNG bunker fuel to Brittany Ferries’ Salamanca during the ship’s regular visits on routes linking Portsmouth, UK and northern Spain. A final decision on the location of the terminal will be made later in 2019. Frédéric Pouget, Brittany Ferries’ Fleet and Operations Director said: “Salamanca will be our second LNG-powered ship, but the first to operate to and from Spain. Repsol’s competence in the field of LNG bunkering technology and environmentally-friendly fuels along with its capacity to deliver to us makes it an obvious partner for us. This new terminal will allow for regular, flexible and reliable deliveries whilst Salamanca is alongside, benefiting our operations and scheduling. Meanwhile the use of LNG will offer much wider benefits to the environment.” Repsol’s Wholesale & Gas Trading Director, Laura Rejón-Pérez also commented: “We are delighted to enter into this long term agreement with Brittany Ferries, a company clearly engaged with innovation and the improvement in its environmental footprint by using LNG as bunker fuel.”

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c7-lng-h2-blends/repsol-will-supply-brittany-ferries-new-lng-fueled-ferry-in-uk-spain-route/

show less

New agreement signed to secure LNG bunkering in northern Europe

Marine LNG Zeebrugge, a joint venture of the Gas4Sea partners (ENGIE, Mitsubishi Corporation and NYK) has signed an agreement with the Norwegian multinational energy group Equinor for supplying their four crude shuttle tankers with LNG as marine fuel in particular in the port of Rotterdam.

The four planned dual fuel vessels are to come into service in early 2020; they will be operated by Equinor in Northern European seas. Marine LNG Zeebrugge will supply fuel using the LNG bunkering vessel ENGIE Zeebrugge which started operations in 2017. She is currently performing ship-to-ship LNG bunkering services in the port of Zeebrugge, in Belgium. ENGIE Zeebrugge holds an LNG capacity of 5,000 m3 and is designed to serve a full range of shipping customers. Gas4Sea is a commercial brand jointly launched by ENGIE, Mitsubishi Corporation and NYK in 2016 to develop the use of LNG as a sustainable, reliable, safe and cost-effective alternative to conventional oil-based marine fuels. Its purpose and ambition is to accompany the shipping sector in the upcoming transition towards a greener maritime environment, in Europe and worldwide. Mitsubishi is developing the LNG marine fuel supply business as one which will contribute to efforts aimed at simultaneously generating economic value, societal value, and environmental value for societies.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c7-lng-h2-blends/new-agreement-signed-to-secure-lng-bunkering-in-northern-europe/

show less

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding holds christening ceremony for next-generation LNG carrier “MARVEL CRANE”

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a Group company of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) based in Yokohama, held a christening ceremony on February 21 for the next-generation LNG carrier currently under construction for Mitsui & Co., Ltd.

The new ship, named MARVEL CRANE, is a state-of-the-art LNG carrier with a design that significantly improves both LNG carrying capacity and fuel performance due to the adoption of a more efficient hull structure and hybrid propulsion system. Completion is scheduled for March 2019, after which the MARVEL CRANE will be put into service, transporting LNG for the Cameron LNG Project in the U.S., in which Mitsui & Co. is participating.The christening ceremony, held at the Koyagi Plant of MHI’s Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, was attended by many people involved with the project. Mitsui & Co., Ltd. Counselor Hiroyuki Kato announced the name of the ship, while his wife performed the ceremonial rope cutting.The MARVEL CRANE is the first of two LNG carriers of the same design being constructed for Mitsui & Co., Ltd. It has a length of 293.0m, width of 48.94m, and depth of 27.5m, with a draft of 11.4m. Deadweight tonnage is approximately 79,000 tons, with a total tank holding capacity of 177,000m3.Mitsubishi Shipbuilding received the order for the new vessel through MI LNG Company, Limited, a joint venture for the design and sale of LNG carriers established by MHI and Imabari Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. Construction was managed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Marine Structure Co., Ltd., an MHI Group company based in Nagasaki. Launching took place on August 3, 2018. Mitsui & Co., Ltd. named its LNG carriers for the Cameron LNG Project “MARVEL” and “CRANE,” after the migratory bird.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/mitsubishi-shipbuilding-holds-christening-ceremony-for-next-generation-lng-carrier-marvel-crane/[Edited]

show less

Hyundai Heavy-Daewoo Shipbuilding to double combined orderbook for LNG Ships

The proposed merger between Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) Co. and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) Co. is expected to double the value of their outstanding orders for LNG ships to over US$12 billion, industry data showed on

Tuesday, February 19.Hyundai Heavy, the world’s largest shipbuilder, is set to formally sign a deal early next month to buy a controlling stake in Daewoo Shipbuilding from state-run Korea Development Bank. KDB is Daewoo Shipbuilding’s main creditor, with a 55.7% stake in the company.According to the data compiled by ship evaluator VesselsValue, the orderbook for LNG ships by Daewoo Shipbuilding is estimated at $6.85 billion, with the corresponding figure for Hyundai Heavy being $6.01 billion.Samsung Heavy Industries Co., a local rival, came in third with outstanding orderbook of $4.69 billion, the data showed.South Korean shipbuilders, once a cornerstone of the country’s economic growth and job creation, had been reeling from mounting losses in the past few years, caused by an industry-wide slump and a glut of vessels amid tough competition with Chinese rivals.Their combined order backlog accounts for 21.2 percent of the total around the globe.VesselsValue data also showed that their combined orders reached $35 billion, to build a total of 350 ships.But industry sources said the takeover may face some hurdles, such as labor unions’ strong opposition to the deal and regulatory approval.In addition, the combination of the two major shipyards could reshape the global shipbuilding sector, which means regulatory approval can be key to the completion of the mega deal.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/hyundai-heavy-daewoo-shipbuilding-to-double-combined-orderbook-for-lng-ships-data/

show less

Angelikoussischooses Daewoo Shipbuilding for latest LNG ship

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., a major shipyard here, said Friday it has received an order to build a liquefied natural gas ship for a Greek company.Daewoo Shipbuilding will build the 174,000 cubic meter LNG carrier

for Maran Gas Maritime Inc., the gas shipping unit of Angelicoussis Shipping Group, by the first half of 2021, the company said in a statement.But the company didn’t provide the value of the contract, citing a confidentiality agreement.Daewoo Shipbuilding has obtained US$740 million worth of orders so far this year to build seven ships, including oil tankers, it said.Daewoo Shipbuilding is aiming to win $8 billion worth of new orders in 2019, up 10 percent from last year’s order target of $7.3 billion.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/angelikoussis-chooses-daewoo-shipbuilding-for-latest-lng-ship/

show less

Excelerate and Equinorperform first ship-to-ship transfer of LNG in the Bahamas

On February 7, 2019, Excelerate Energy L.P. (Excelerate) and Equinor Energy AS (Equinor) completed the first ever ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in The Bahamas.

Utilizing Excelerate’s floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) Exemplar and Equinor’s LNG carrier Arctic Voyager, a full LNG cargo was transferred using the double-banked LNG transfer system while moored at Equinor’s South Riding Point storage and transshipment terminal which is strategically located for storage and transshipment of crude, products and LNG.“Excelerate conducted the industry’s first commercial STS transfer of LNG in 2007, and since then, STS transfers have been completed and proven safe in a wide range of environments, now including The Bahamas,” stated Excelerate’s Chief Commercial Officer Daniel Bustos. “This new STS location allows us to provide additional commercial flexibility to our customers and respond to prompt market needs in a safe and reliable manner.”Excelerate recently completed its 1500th commercial STS transfer on February 3, 2019, at the EngroElengy Terminal in Port Qasim, Pakistan. To date, Excelerate has successfully transferred over 170,900,000 cubic meters of LNG using its STS protocol – of the 1500 operations, over 1300 have been with third-party vessels.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/excelerate-and-equinor-perform-first-ship-to-ship-transfer-of-lng-in-the-bahamas/

show less

Qatar to acquire up to 60 new LNG vessels

Minister of State for Energy Affairs and the President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum, H E Saad bin Sherida Al Kaabi, said yesterday that Qatar will be acquiring a substantial number of LNG vessels to transport the increased output of gas (the post-moratorium volumes).

It may require up to 60 additional ships which will be depending on various factors.H E Al Kaabi also said that it is still very fluid, and the exact number will become clearer with time as how many vessels will be required to transport the additional volume of nearly 50 MMT of LNG which will depend on customers’ destinations, size of contracts and vessels and many other factors.In addition to its core shipping activities, Nakilat operates the ship repair and construction facilities at Erhama Bin Jaber Al Jalahma Shipyard in RasLaffan Industrial City via two strategic joint ventures: Nakilat-Keppel Offshore & Marine (N-KOM) and NakilatDamen Shipyards Qatar (NDSQ).Asked if any of those vessels could be built locally at the shipyard, he said that it is a state-of- the-art facility which does a lot of maintenance and repair works for ships and provide many other services to the industry but building LNG vessels in Qatar will not be price competitive and feasible.“We are going to expand our LNG production from 77 mtpa to 110 mtpa in Qatar and 16 mtpa abroad (in the US) with the total revised volume reaching at 126 mtpa within 4-5 years,” he noted, adding that a lot of works related to the expansion project are going to be completed by next month, and contracts for onshore rigs, jackets and other engineering works are going to be announced very soon.

https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/19/02/2019/Qatar-to-acquire-up-to-60-new-LNG-vessels[Edited]

show less

GO TOP

SNAPSHOT: INTERNATIONAL

Technological Development for Cleaner and Greener Environment Hydrogen & Bio-Methane

Hydrogen refueling infrastructure keeps growing in Germany

In Germany, 17 new public hydrogen stations started operation in 2018, of a total of 48 refueling stations that were opened worldwide last year, further consolidating Germany as the country with the second largest public hydrogen refueling infrastructure globally with 60 public stations, ahead of the USA (42 stations) and

only surpassed by Japan (96 public stations). This is the result of the eleventh annual assessment by H2stations.org, a website of Ludwig-Bölkow-Systemtechnik (LBST) and TÜV SÜD.In addition to the 60 public refueling stations, which can be accessed and used like conventional fueling stations, planning has already started for another 38 dedicated locations of which 34 will be built by the H2Mobility Germany industry initiative. Four new sites in the Eastern part of Germany have increased the comprehensive national coverage and the refueling station density along the increasingly seamless hydrogen corridors from East to West and North to South in Europe.New international plans towards a concrete near term deployment of additional refueling stations are particularly noteworthy in the Netherlands (17 planned stations), France (12), Canada (7), South Korea (27), and China (18) with the quoted numbers corresponding only to stations which have at least a designated city. In case of China, current preliminary planning by individual provinces leads to significantly higher numbers. Other than South Korea and Japan, where most stations are built for passenger cars, the initial hydrogen infrastructure in China first targets buses and small delivery trucks.The past year saw increasing activities particularly in the use of hydrogen as fuel for trucks. In addition to Nikola Motor and Hyundai, Toyota is also working on the development of fuel cell-powered trucks and their refueling infrastructure in the USA. A dedicated service station has already been commissioned in Southern California. In Europe, a fuel cell truck has been operating in Switzerland since 2016.According to Ludwig-Bölkow-Systemtechnik, 152 hydrogen stations are currently in operation in Europe, 136 in Asia, 78 in North America. Of the 369 hydrogen stations worldwide, 273 are publicly accessible and can be used like any conventional retail stations. The others are run for closed user groups supplying e.g. buses or fleet customers.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c4-stations/hydrogen-refueling-infrastructure-keeps-growing-in-germany/

show less

Toyota and Dutch institute team up to produce hydrogen from thin air

The basic idea behind the fundamental research conducted by the Dutch Institute for Fundamental Energy Research (DIFFER) in association with Toyota Motor Europe (TME) consists of putting a dedicated device in contact with air, exposing it to sunlight and it starts producing fuel, for free.

The partnership aims to develop a device that absorbs water vapor, and splits it into hydrogen and oxygen directly using the sun’s energy. The LIFT (Launchpad for Innovative Future Technology) research proposal has now been rewarded a grant from the NWO ENW PPS Fund.In this project, DIFFER and TME are exploring an innovative way to directly produce hydrogen out of humid air. The motivation for this research project is twofold: new sustainable fuels are needed to firstly decrease dependence on fossil fuels, and secondly to lower the emission of greenhouse gasses. One of these sustainable fuels is hydrogen, which can be used to store renewable energy. When hydrogen is combined with oxygen in a fuel cell, the energy is released in the form of electricity, with clean water as the only emission.In the next stage of the project, the partners intend to significantly improve the set-up. “In our first prototype, we used photoelectrodes that are known to be very stable. But the material used only absorbs UV light, which makes up less than 5% of all of the sunlight that reaches Earth,” added Tsampas. “The next step therefore is to apply state of the art materials and optimize the system architecture to increase both the water intake and the amount of sunlight that is being absorbed.”

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c7-lng-h2-blends/toyota-and-dutch-institute-join-forces-to-produce-hydrogen-from-thin-air/

show less

Increasing injection of renewable natural gas in Californian pipelines

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) and biogas producer Calgren Dairy Fuels (Calgren) announced that renewable natural gas produced at Calgren’s dairy digester facility in Pixley, California is being injected into SoCalGas pipelines.

The project marks the first time that carbon-negative renewable natural gas produced from cow manure has been injected directly into SoCalGas’ natural gas system. In August 2018, SoCalGas began receiving renewable natural gas into its system from CR&R, Inc.’s anaerobic digestion facility in Perris, California. The renewable natural gas from that digestion facility is already being used to fuel about 400 waste hauling trucks.

Lyle Schlyer, Calgren’s President, added: “The benefits of this partnership between dairy farmers, private industry and SoCalGas are numerous. We produce clean renewable natural gas for use as a carbon-negative fuel which benefits the local community through cleaner air and jobs.”Calgren’s facility, known as a dairy digester pipeline cluster, will collect biogas from anaerobic digesters at 12 Tulare County dairies then clean it to produce pipeline-quality renewable natural gas. This is the first such dairy digester pipeline cluster in California and is expected to be the largest dairy biogas operation in the U.S. when Calgren adds 9 additional dairies later this year. The facility will capture the methane produced from the manure of more than 75,000 cows, preventing about 130,000 tons of greenhouse gas from entering the atmosphere each year, the equivalent of taking more than 25,000 passenger cars off the road for a year.SoCalGas will be capable of adding up to 2.26 billion cubic feet of renewable natural gas each year to its pipeline system from the facility, enough to fuel more than 1,200 Class 8 heavy duty trucks.

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c1-markets/increasing-injection-of-renewable-natural-gas-in-californian-pipelines/

show less

Valioadds Volvo FH LNG as Finland’s first biogas-fueled milk collection truck

https://www.ngvjournal.com/s1-news/c1-markets/increasing-injection-of-renewable-natural-gas-in-californian-pipelines/

show less

GO TOP

PAGES |1| 2 | 3| 4| 5 | 6 | 7 |8 |9

NGS INDIA

City Gas Distribution – Retail PNG / CNG / LNG & AUTO LPG

IOC, HPCL win maximum areas under tenth round of city gas bidding

CGD conundrum – India

Senior level exits in Gujarat Gas as pvt players stoke competition

India to push for CNG, LNG cars till electric vehicles become affordable

CNG and PNG service begins in Patna

Ford India launches Aspire CNG

CNG buses roll in West Bengal

New three-wheeler CNG range for Patna by Piaggio

Bokaro to open state’s first CNG station todayJharkhand

IGL adding record number of PNG users this fiscal

Natural Gas / Pipelines / Company News

Policy Matters / Gas Pricing / Others

LNG Development / Shipping

Indian Oil buys commissioning cargo of LNG for new Ennore terminal

Natural Gas / Transnational Pipelines / Others

Shell, PetroChina spat holds up biggest Australian coal seam gas project

Azerbaijan to become a more significant supplier of natural gas to Southern Europe

Europe set for greater competition between pipeline gas, LNG: BP

Global LNG Development

Warm winter pushes LNG to 17-month low in biggest market

Australia’s east coast LNG plants unlikely to ever hit full capacity -study

Anadarko signs 20-year LNG deal with Indonesia’s Pertamina

Gazprom grabs record share of Europe gas market despite challenges

Natural Gas/LNG Utilization – Roadways – E-mobility

LNG as a Marine Fuel/Bunkering/ LNG Shipping

Technological Development for Cleaner and Greener Environment Hydrogen & Bio-Methane