Asian and European LNG prices increase for third week propelled by geopolitical and energy policy concerns
Asian liquefied natural gas prices and European cargo values increased for a third week as the Northern Hemisphere winter gas season is set to close with high storage yet to be tested for a second year by adverse weather while crude oil hit a four-month high on negative supply forecasts.
LNG and pipeline gas provider Equinor pulls plug on wind project tied to oil and gas fields as not viable
Equinor, the European LNG producer from the Hammerfest plant in northern Norway and a leading pipeline gas supplier to the European Union and the UK, said it was postponing indefinitely a large offshore wind project called Trollvind citing issues such as rising costs and technology availability.
Former LNG exporter Libya is boosted by the re-start of Mediterranean offshore natural gas well
The National Oil Corporation (NOC) of Libya, a former LNG exporter, has announced that the Mellitah Oil and Gas Company, among whose shareholders is Italy’s Eni, had succeeded in returning a Mediterranean offshore natural gas well to production.
Europe’s largest LNG import terminal breaks records with wider sources of cargoes supplying UK and EU
The UK Isle of Grain LNG import terminal, the largest in Europe and located on the Medway River in the southeast English county of Kent, reported a 60 percent surge in cargo deliveries in the past year and when more gas was supplied to the UK and the European Union.
IEA forecasts low natural gas demand growth for China and sees Russia losing $50Bln a year in gas sales
Natural gas demand growth in China, including LNG deliveries, is forecast to slow considerably, falling to 2 percent per annum between 2021 and 2030 compared with an average growth rate of 12 percent per annum between 2010 and 2021.
Large natural gas supplier VNG becomes second German buyer of Gazprom gas to apply for bail-out
German natural gas supplier Verbundnetz Gas AG (VNG), based in the eastern city of Leipzig, has become the second large Russian gas buyer to be approved for a Berlin Government bail-out to stay afloat after LNG buyer Uniper received government funds in return for a stake.
European gas and LNG exporter Norway will keep open its last coal mine for energy-pressed Germany
European pipeline natural gas provider and LNG cargo exporter Norway has made a strategic decision to keep open the nation’s last coal mine located on the demilitarised archipelago of Svalbard in the Arctic despite opposition from the green lobby.
Asian spot LNG prices regain initiative as European needs less urgent as Spring’s arrival offsets Ukraine gloom
Asian liquefied natural gas spot prices regained the initiative from European values with May gaining more than 16 percent as the Dutch Title Transfer Facility wholesale futures price dropped by the same amount with supply concerns helped by the arrival of Northern Hemisphere Spring weather.
Enagás earnings
July 27 (LNGJ) - Enagás, the Spanish gas grid and LNG terminals operator as well as a shareholder in the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), posted first-half net profits of €213.1 million ($251.2M), with greater contributions from subsidiaries while total demand for natural gas in Spain increased by 6.3 percent in the first six months of 2021.
The company said that the contribution to earnings from the US Tallgrass Energy pipelines unit and the TAP represented 40.4 percent of the total. Enagás said that since being commissioned at the end of 2020, the TAP pipeline that links Turkey with Italy through Greece and Albania had delivered 3 billion cubic metres of gas to customers through the end of June 2021.
European LNG terminals owner Fluxys completes transaction for minority stake in Brazilian gas system
Belgian company Fluxys, whose assets include the Zeebrugge LNG import terminal and a stake in Dunkirk LNG in France as well as the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, has completed its purchase of minority stake in a gas system operator in Brazil.
The deal is for part of the Brazilian utility, Transportadora Brasileira Gasoduto Bolívia-Brasil (TBG), which is the owner and operator of a 2,600-kilometres pipeline system in the southern part of the South American country linking with neighbour Bolivia.
Fluxys said the completion of the equity transfer was made by its new partner in TBG, the US fund, EIG Global Energy Partners.
“The agreement with EIG is a solid fit with Fluxys’ strategy to develop outside Europe,” said the Belgium-based company.
“The work done by Fluxys and EIG has provided a sound basis for their continued cooperation,” it added.
“Fluxys looks forward to joining the Board of TBG in its efforts to move the company ahead in its development and has set up a branch in Rio de Janeiro for managing its partnership in TBG,” Fluxys stated.
The Fluxys infrastructure group employs 1,200 people in Europe in its growing gas transmission and storage and LNG terminal businesses.
Its associated companies across Europe operate 9,000km of pipelines and its assets import 29 billion cubic metres of regasified LNG.
It is also a shareholder in the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, the 878-kilometres transportation system bringing Caspian natural gas from Azerbaijan to Greece and Albania, and via the Adriatic Sea to Italy.
The Belgian grid operator said the partnership with TBG was an important step in the roll-out of the Fluxys overseas growth strategy.
