LNG

Novatek, the Russian natural gas company and operator of the Yamal LNG export plant and developer of the delayed Arctic LNG II venture, has reported positive operating data for the second quarter of 2024 amid continued Western sanctions.

July 5 (LNGJ) - Three LNG cargoes are headed for Belgium as deliveries to other European ports start to decline. The LNG carrier “Lusail” with 142,800 cubic metres capacity is scheduled to discharge a shipment from Qatar on July 6 at the Belgian terminal at Zeebrugge. The cargo was lifted on June 17 from Ras Laffan in the Gulf. A second Qatari cargo is due at the Belgian port on July 14 on board the “Simaisma”, a vessel with capacity of 143,000 cubic metres.

   In between the Qatari deliveries will be the arrival on July 12 of the carrier “Vladimir Rusanov” with a trans-shipment from the Yamal export plant in Arctic Russia lifted on July 2 from the port of Sabetta.

March 16 (LNGJ) - Two cargoes are heading for the Netherlands and Belgium next week as European LNG prices decline. The “Golar Celsius”, a vessel with 154,950 cubic metres capacity, is scheduled to deliver a US cargo on March 21 to the Dutch Gate terminal in Rotterdam and which was lifted on March 7 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana.

   The Bahamas-flagged “Rudolf Samoylovich, with capacity of 170,000 cubic metres, is due to berth on March 23 at the Zeebrugge terminal in Belgium with a Russian cargo lifted on March 15 from the Yamal export plant operated by Novatek in northern Siberia.

Fluxys, the Belgian gas grid and LNG terminal owner, reported annual increased consolidated turnover of €573.2 million ($638.3M) and more shipping traffic and truck-loadings as expansion plans progressed.

Fluxys Belgium reported record activity levels at the Zeebrugge liquefied natural gas import terminal in its first-half earnings for its regulated business and pointed out that the recent signing of a new capacity agreement with Qatar guarantees long-term stability in LNG carrier traffic.

The Belgian Federal Commission for Electricity and Gas Regulation has approved the tariff and liquefied natural gas services agreement proposals for unloading slots and additional storage services at the Zeebrugge LNG import terminal.

The regulatory approval clears the way for Fluxys LNG to finalise new long-term contracts for the facility up to 2044.

“The approval allows us to turn binding interest from the market into new long-term contracts worth roughly 1 billion euros,” said Pascal De Buck, Chief Executive and Chairman of Fluxys Belgium, the transmission network operator.

The director of the regulatory Commission, Laurent Jacquet, said the tariffs have decreased for all terminal users who unload and store LNG, and inject natural gas into the transmission system.

“Through the new tariffs, the Commission has established a solid and stable framework for regulatory supervision in the future,” explained Jacquet.

“These favourable conditions consolidate Zeebrugge's position as an access point for LNG deliveries to Europe,” he added.

Fluxys said that the current long-term contracts for unloading at the Zeebrugge terminal expire in 2028.

During a subscription window held from 30 April until May 24 unloading slots and additional storage services at the Zeebrugge facility were offered over subsequent periods up to 2044.

“The subscription window proved highly successful and revealed binding interest from the market for the entire unloading capacity at the facility up to 2044,” stated Fluxys.

Fluxys and the regulator noted that the positive outcome of the subscription window process was the result of a combination of factors.

“Gas import needs in Northwest Europe are set to rise significantly,” they said.

“Gas production in The Netherlands and the North Sea is declining, while gas demand for power generation will increase to accommodate the phase-out of sizeable coal, lignite and nuclear power generation capacity in the region,” they added.

Fluxys stated that the subscription window offered an attractive tariff proposition together with optimum destination flexibility throughout Northwest Europe from a strategically positioned LNG terminal.

Zeebrugge is directly linked into the Belgian market (ZTP) and is fully interconnected with the gas systems of all surrounding markets.

These include the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) the German Gaspool, the Trading Region France (TRF) market and the UK National Balancing Point (NBP) and take-away capacity from the terminal is readily available.

Fluxys LNG, the operator of the Zeebrugge import terminal in Belgium, has opened a subscription window from April 30 to May 24 for unloading slots and additional storage services at the facility.

European liquefied natural gas terminal stakeholders and network operators in Spain, Italy and Belgium have formally acquired majority control of the Greek gas grid operator sold in a tender by the government privatization agency.

June 5 (LNGJ) - The 154,900 cubic metres capacity carrier “Trinity Arrow” will deliver a shipment on June 5 to the Zeebrugge terminal in Belgium from the Ras Laffan plant in Qatar. The 210,100 cubic metres capacity Q-Flex vessel “Fraiha” will deliver a Qatargas shipment on June 7 to the Aliaga facility near Izmir in Turkey. The 155,000 cubic metres capacity vessel “British Ruby” will deliver a cargo on June 9 to the Pakistani Port Qasim import facilities near Karachi from the Trinidad plant at Point Fortin in the Caribbean. The 147,200 cubic metres capacity carrier “Arctic Princess” will unload a shipment on June 10 at the Baltic port of Klaipeda in Lithuania from the Hammerfest plant in Norway, operated by Equinor. The 160,400 cubic metres capacity carrier “Soyo” will unload a shipment on June 12 at the Indian Hazira terminal, operated by Shell India, from the Angola plant in southwest Africa. The 176,800 cubic metres vessel “LNG Lagos II” is scheduled to unload a shipment on June 25 at the Map Ta Phut terminal in Thailand from the Nigerian export plant on Bonny Island.

Belgian shipping company Exmar said it was continuing to discuss the acquisition by Royal Vopak of the Netherlands, the global petroleum storage company, of its LNG Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) business.