LNG

Southern Cone gas and power players comprising the nations of Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and Chile have plans to invest around $46 billion in natural gas production and $94Bln in new power supply through 2033.

Enagás, the Spanish natural gas grid and LNG terminals operator. posted a 15 percent increase in net profits and said the network of six LNG terminals had saved the country money and confirmed the opening in early 2023 of a seventh and existing LNG export terminal dedicated to European Union supplies.

May 10 (LNGJ) - HAM Group of Spain, the developer of a growing European LNG filling station network, is also expanding into South America with a second LNG service station in Chile. HAM Chile will be in charge of the engineering process of the LNG station as part of a joint venture with regional operator Empresas Lipigas. The existing LNG station is located at the fuelling base of trucking company Transportes San Gabriel, in Linares, 300 kilometres south of the Chilean capital Santiago.

   HAM said the second station would be located in Tabolango in the Valparaíso region and about 10 kilometres from Concón, a coastal city in central Chile and will open in June. “This new station will connect the regions of Valparaíso and Maule through a means of transport with cleaner energy. Our objective of having a green transport corridor at the national level in Chile is advancing rapidly,” said Esteban Rodríguez, Manager of LNG and Biofuels at Lipigas.

Grupo HAM of Spain, the European Union liquefied natural gas filling station network owner, has completed a project to bring the South American nation of Chile its first LNG fuel station after previously opening a facility in Peru.

Liquefied natural gas cargo liftings are decreasing this week while North Asian spot cargo prices and benchmark European values were still strong after the Dutch Title Transfer Facility price reached a 2021 high and North Sea Brent crude was at levels not seen for two years.

The US Department of Energy has just published its latest liquefied natural gas export data illustrating the development of seasonal price differentials for the various plants, while Pakistan joined India in the top five of monthly recipients and the Indians overtook the UK in the overall totals.

US cargo prices declined in September to an average of $5.35 per million British thermal units from $5.55 per MMBtu in the previous month, according to the DoE November report.

The proportion of spot cargoes compared with the contracted and other tolling-based deliveries has declined in 2020.

The number of overall spot cargoes dropped in September to 8.4 percent from 8.6 percent in the previous month. The total volumes shipped since February 2016 came to 5,369.2 Bcf of which 449.6 Bcf were spot shipments.

The average year-to-date prices for each plant (from the export point) from highest to lowest in September 2020 were: Cove Point (Maryland) $6.33 per MMBtu, Cameron (Louisiana) $5.70 per MMBtu, Sabine Pass (Louisiana) $4.97 per MMBtu, Freeport (Texas) $4.80 per MMBtu,, Corpus Christi (Texas) $4.29 per MMBtu and Elba Island (Georgia) $4.22 per MMBtu (just four cargoes shipped by September since December 2019).

Since US LNG exports began more than four years ago in February 2016, the DoE said a total of 1,650 cargoes (5,367 billion cubic metres), had been shipped on LNG carriers and 526 in ISO containers through September 2020 to 38 different countries, including to four nations in the Caribbean who receive ISO containers.

The top five countries of destination represented 52.3 percent of total US LNG exports in September 2020 and Pakistan joined India in this group.

The top five destinations for cargoes in September were: South Korea (32.1 billion cubic feet – nine cargoes); Spain (15.2 Bcf – five cargoes); China (11.2 Bcf – three cargoes); India (10.5 Bcf – three cargoes) and Pakistan (9.9 Bcf – three cargoes).

A total of 45 cargoes were shipped in September compared with 36 in August and 50 shipments in September 2019.

The list of the Top 10 countries of destination overall since 2016 through September 2020 showed two Asian nations, South Korea and Japan leading, ahead of Mexico and Spain respectively.

The Top 10 recipients of US LNG by numbers of cargoes, are: 1) South Korea 252 cargoes. 2) Japan 162. 3) Mexico 153. 4) Spain 118. 5) China 90. 6) India 80. 7) UK 79. 8) Chile 79. 9) France 63 and 10) Brazil 55.

The Sabine Pass plant overtook the Cameron facility that briefly became the US volume leader in August with 11 cargoes before being closed by a hurricane at the end of that month.

With Cameron out of action, the September cargoes came from Sabine Pass (18) Corpus Christi (11), Freeport (10), Cove Point (5) and Elba Island (1).

The average year-to-date price of US LNG through September 2020 dropped to $5.11 per MMBtu versus August’s $5.36 per MMBtu.

Shipments from the Cove Point plant were the most expensive in September and cost an average of $6.90 per MMBtu ($6.17 per MMBtu in August).

Prices of shipments from the Sabine Pass export point in September averaged $5.32 per MMBtu ($4.89 per MMBtu in August).

Prices at Corpus Christi in September averaged $4.43 per MMBtu ($3.73 per MMBtu in August).

The Freeport facility posted average September prices of $5.58 per MMBtu ($5.86 per MMBtu in August).

The Elba Island plant shipped one cargo in September as well as one in August and the latest was just its fourth overall. The September prices was $3.70 per MMBtu.

The US also sends regular ISO containers by cargo ship to the Caribbean nations of Barbados, the Bahamas and Haiti.

In September, a total of 18 containers were delivered versus 19 in August. The recipients were Bahamas 10, Haiti four and Barbados four, while no ISO containers reached Jamaica in September.

Grupo HAM of Spain, the LNG and gas fuel infrastructure company, said its subsidiary in Chile has been chosen to design, construct and commission the South American nation’s first LNG filling station.

The US Department of Energy has just published its latest liquefied natural gas export data illustrating mixed monthly prices, lower volumes and two Asian nations, Japan and India, overtaking two continental neighbours Mexico and Chile in volume terms in the overall standings of cargo recipients.

The South American nation of Chile has imported 2.23 million tonnes of LNG during the first 10 months of the year, down 5.7 percent on the same period of 2018 as pipeline gas supplies from Argentina have provided competition.

Naturgy Energy Group, the Spanish utility with major US and Russian liquefied natural gas supply contracts as well as gas and power businesses in six Latin American countries, returned to a net profit in the first half of 2019 from a heavy loss in the year-ago period.

Naturgy posted a first-half net profit of 592 euros ($660M) compared with a loss of 3.28 billion euros reported in the same six months of 2018.

The utility had approved a new strategic plan in 2018 through to 2022 as well as a company overhaul. This meant that assets were impaired to the amount of 4.85Bln euros due to the re-measurement of the estimated future cash flows.

Naturgy is one of the companies that have signed 20-year agreements for US cargoes from Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi plants and is also a main contract holder for cargoes from the Yamal LNG plant in Arctic Russia operated by natural gas company Novatek.

The US and Russian volumes were booked under Naturgy's previous name, Gas Natural Fenosa.

The utility’s international LNG earnings in the first half dropped by 32.2 percent to 158M euros from 233M euros in the 2018 first-half.

European power generation earnings fell by 27.7 percent to 120M euros from 166M euros a year ago.

“In Gas & Power, the first half results have been driven by a notable improvement in services sales, which has experienced a strong margin recovery in power supply, more than offsetting a more challenging scenario in International LNG and Europe Power generation,” said Naturgy.

“The company’s new commercial policies and de-risking efforts, together with efficiencies, have also helped offset the global decline in gas prices during the period,” it added.

“The company has continued to work on improving the risk profile of its merchant activities. As such, in International LNG, for example, Naturgy has already secured approximately 90 percent of its LNG volumes for the year while in Power supply, it has continued to reduce its portfolio of fixed price sales contracts,” the company explained.

Overall gross earnings in the Gas & Power division rose 7.6 percent to 640M euros from 595M euros in the same six months of last year.

Natural gas sales in Spain declined by 8.3 percent in the first half to 116,131 gigawatt hours compared with 126,587 GWh in the first half of 2018.

“This was mainly as a result of lower sales in the Spanish residential and industrial segments (down 11.8 percent and down 14.4 percent respectively), partially compensated by higher sales to combined-cycle gas-fired power plants (up 14.0 percent) and third parties (+17.7 percent),” said Naturgy.

In its other divisions European, Middle East and Africa Infrastructure earned 919M euros, up 3.1 percent.

The Latin America South Infrastructure earnings rose 23.8 percent to 448M euros, while Latin America North Infrastructure, comprising Mexico gas and Panama electricity, came in at 189M euros, up 53.7 percent.

Latin America South includes, Chile electricity, Chile gas, Brazil gas, Argentina gas and electricity and Peru gas.

Therefore, Naturgy posted a 7.5 percent rise in first-half gross earnings of 2.15Bln euros versus 2.00Bln in the same period of 2018.

Naturgy’s net sales dropped 4.4 percent to 11.63Bln euros from 12.17Bln in the first half of last year.

The company’s diverse LNG supply portfolio also includes shipments from Algeria, Qatar and Nigeria. The company additionally owns a small fleet of LNG vessels.