LEAD STORY
Ripple effects from Qatar LNG outage hit Asian economies hardest
Written by AJ KotzeAnxiety abounds amid Asian LNG buyers as markets fear ripple effects from the loss of 12.8 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), or 17 percent of Qatari LNG amid force majeure on Ras Laffan Trains 4 and 6, with repairs taking three to five years. Major importers like Japan’s JERA and India’s Petronet have been seeking to buy a strip of cargoes, for security of supply reasons – though it has become difficult to price these cargoes over the delivery period following the latest round of attacks on energy infrastructure around the Persian Gulf; our Correspondent & Markets Editor Anja Karl has more.
Sempra’s Energía Costa Azul is set to become Mexico’s first large-scale LNG export facility when it begins commercial operations in 2026. The 3.25MTPA plant represents a new strategic route for Permian Basin gas to reach Asian markets, bypassing the Panama Canal. With Qatari supply disrupted by conflict in the Persian Gulf, Costa Azul is set to open into a transformed market where Pacific-facing capacity has acquired an urgency that did not exist when the project was conceived, our Markets Editor Dr Alexander Wilk writes.
Also in this issue
The Persian Gulf crisis removed nearly 5MMt of monthly LNG supply from the market in under three weeks, with Ras Laffan effectively shut and the Strait of Hormuz closed to commercial traffic. Our data is preliminary at the time of writing, covering cargoes with market visibility through 23 March 2026, with like-for-like comparisons to the same windows in February 2026 and March 2025, our Markets Editor Dr Alexander Wilk writes.
ABS supports safe electrification of near shore FLNGs
Written by AJ KotzeFloating LNG operators are exploring innovative power solutions with clear guidance on safety for pursuing operational objectives.*
Burckhardt Compression wins largest BOG compressor technology order
Written by AJ KotzeGerman engineering company, Burckhardt Compression has been awarded a large contract by South Korean shipbuilder, Hanwha Ocean to supply 14 boil off gas (BOG) compressors to be fitted on seven 174,000 cu m LNGCs.
As the Hormuz crisis enters its second month, the shutdown of gas exports from the Persian Gulf has exposed the fragility of Europe’s LNG supply chains but may also be an unlikely catalyst for the adoption of bioLNG across the continents fuelling network. Fuelling Editor Malcolm Ramsay explores.
A round-up of latest events, company and industry news
Written by AJ KotzeABB: Electrical engineering group, ABB has upgraded the propulsion drives in nine CoolCo LNGCs.
ABB’s modernisation solution, which was carried out with minimal operational impact, enhanced the drives’ reliability, extending their lifetime by more than 10 years. This helped optimize the use of installed infrastructure, turning circular practices into strategic advantages, the company said..
