LNG

QatarEnergies has notified Edison that it is unable to deliver three LNG cargoes, extending force majeure until the end of September, the Italian utility stated. A total of 24 cargoes, representing a combined 3 bcm of natural gas, are now subject to force majeure over the April-September delivery window, with Edison saying it has already replaced most of the lost volumes.

Qatar could restore LNG production at unaffected Ras Laffan trains within a month after safe shipping through Hormuz resumes, sources told Reuters. Shipping and logistics are deemed the main bottlenecks, rather than plant operation.

Turkey’s state-owned pipeline operator BOTAS and the Italian energy company Edison have agreed to work together on LNG trade and swap operations, while evaluating a new gas pipeline across the Mediterranean between Turkey and Italy.

Edison expects Qatari LNG supply will resume within 30-45 days after a peace deal, though initial deliveries would likely be just two-thirds of contracted supply, CEO Nicola Monti said.

QatarEnergy has extended force majeure on term LNG deliveries through mid-June, with Edison notified of a 10-cargoe shortfall while Petronet says it expects to receive its full contacted Qatari LNG volumes once Hormuz transits resume.

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is scheduled to visit Algeria this week, seeking to step up pipeline gas imports after QatarEnergy notified Edison it cannot deliver the five contracted cargoes due in early April.

June 5 (LNGJ) - Edison SpA of Italy, the energy company involved in the Italian natural gas and electricity supply markets, confirmed talks to sell its natural gas storage facilities to gas grid and LNG terminals operator SNAM.

   Edison said it was negotiating for SNAM to purchase the Edison storage subsidiary Edison Stoccaggio. Successful completion of the talks would give SNAM control of gas storage facilities located in Cellino (Teramo), Collalto (Treviso) and San Potito e Cotignola (Ravenna), with a total storage capacity of about 1 billion cubic metres per annum. Edison itself is part of France’s EDF group.

Shell has joined with the other UK-based major BP to file a complaint with the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) against LNG developer Venture Global claiming the Arlington, Virginia-based company was “illegally withholding information” about delays in delivering LNG from its Calcasieu Pass export plant in Louisiana.

SNAM, the Italian gas gid operator and liquefied natural gas import terminals owner, said it was moving forward on plans for a fifth LNG regasification facility at the Adriatic port of Ravenna.

SNAM has already started the construction of the associated facilities for the new Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) to be deployed at Ravenna.

A meeting in Ravenna involving SNAM Chief Executive Stefano Venier, the utility’s Chief Operating Officer Massimo Derchi as well as the Mayor of Ravenna, Michele de Pascale, as part of a public conference outlined progress on bringing the FSRU “BW Singapore” to Ravenna.

The FSRU is the second purchased by SNAM to improve Italy’s energy security and will be operational by the end of 2024.

The ship will provide the country with an additional 5 billion cubic metres of gas, in addition to those already supplied by the FSRU “Golar Tundra” which has been operational on Italy’s West Coast port of Piombino in Tuscany since July 2023.

Municipal benefits

SNAM said that Ravenna would also benefit from hosting the FSRU and helping with Italy’s energy security by having backing for town and regional projects.

“These works will enable the Municipality to carry out significant interventions in various areas, from urban regeneration to sustainable mobility, from reforestation to energy saving with a total commitment of €10 million (€10.7M),” said SNAM.

“At the peak of activities, more than 1,200 people will be employed, involving over 100 suppliers from the province of Ravenna and the Emilia Romagna Region, with contracts assigned to local companies in the Ravenna area amounting to over €300 million ($320M),” the company added.

“During the Ravenna conference, SNAM also provided an update on progress of the works for the first carbon-capture and storage (CCS) project, which will make the Ravenna hub one of the world's largest sites for CO₂ storage and the largest in the Mediterranean,” the company added.

Built in 2015, the “BW Singapore” will be able to store 170,000 cubic metres of LNG, regasify it then have it transferred into a new pipeline connected to the connection point with the National Gas Pipeline Network located around 42 kilometres (26 miles) from the FSRU mooring point.

Bunkering

Ravenna is already the location of a small-scale LNG bunkering station established under the European Union's clean fuel policies.

Spanish LNG terminals and gas grid operator Enagás and Italian utility company Edison are among the shareholders in the small-scale facility serving the LNG trucking and ship bunkering sectors.

In addition to the Piombino FSRU terminal on the west Coast, SNAM already operates the onshore Panigaglia LNG facility on the northwest coast near Genoa and which has been in service since 1969.

The grid operator also has a controlling stake in the “FSRU Toscana” moored off the West Coast Italian port of Livorno.

The new FSRU facility at Ravenna will be in the same area as the Adriatic LNG terminal

Adriatic LNG terminal is majority-owned by US major ExxonMobil and with QatarEnergy also a shareholder.

The Adriatic terminal is a gravity-based structure located 15 km (9.3 miles) off the Veneto coastline and SNAM is a 7.3 percent shareholder in the facility.

Italy's gas grid and LNG terminal group SNAM has signed an accord with Italian utility company Edison, a subsidiary of French power operator Électricité de France, to develop small-scale LNG projects focused on the Mediterranean.