LNG

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.

SNAM, the Italian gas grid operator and liquefied natural gas import terminals owner, is progressing with the replacement and financing of natural gas pipelines to strengthen South-North infrastructure.

Italian floating LNG terminal company, OLT Offshore LNG Toscana controlled by Italian natural gas grid and LNG terminals operator Societa Nazionale Metanodotti (SNAM), said the “FSRU Toscana” vessel would be undergoing long-term maintenance at a shipyard and would be offline for six months.

Saipem, the Italian energy and LNG engineering company specialising in subsea and oil and gas development projects and pipelines, posted soaring third-quarter revenues of more than €3 billion ($3.2Bln) as global demand surged.

Saipem said revenues to the end of September 2023 amounted to €3.02Bln compared with €2.85Bln in the same three months of 2022.

Quarterly gross earnings increased to €230 million versus €168M in the prior-year quarter. Net profits in the quarter came in at €39M versus a loss of €8M in the same quarter last year.

The Milan-based company said new contracts added to the backlog in the first nine months of 2023 amounted to €11.92Bln, an increase from the €6.92Bln in the corresponding period of 2022.

The backlog as of September 30, 2023 amounted to a total of €27.57Bln. These contracts comprised €15.08Bln in asset-based services, €10.33Bln in Energy Carriers and €2.15Bln in Offshore Drilling of which €2.69Bln was being completed in 2023.

LNG awards

Saipem won contracts earlier in 2023 with three linked to increased LNG production in Angola, Trinidad and Papua New Guinea.

“Group performance further improved with another quarter of growth in terms of revenues, margins, net result and cash generation, confirming the trend already recorded in the first six months of the year,” said Saipem.

“The improvement is recorded in the Offshore, Engineering and Construction and Drilling divisions,” Saipem added.

Saipem is also showing continued traction in the Middle East. After the close of the quarter, on October 5, Saipem, in consortium with National Petroleum Construction Company (NPCC), signed on behalf of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company a contract related to the Hail and Ghasha development project-package one in the United Arab Emirates.

Saipem said its share of the contract amounted to around $4.1Bln. The project is aimed at developing the resources of the Hail and Ghasha natural gas fields located offshore Abu Dhabi.

The project scope of work encompasses the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of four drilling centres and one processing plant to be built on artificial islands, as well as various offshore structures and more than 300 kilometres of subsea pipelines.

Adriatic FSRU

As part of the domestic Italian LNG build-out Saipem was awarded a contract by Italian gas system operator SNAM for the construction of the associated facilities for the new Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) to be located in the Adriatic Sea offshore Ravenna as Italy’s fifth import terminal.

The contract, awarded jointly via a temporary venture with two other Italian companies Rosetti Marino and Micoperi, comprises the EPC and installation of a new offshore facility and for the docking and mooring of the FSRU.

The latest Italian floating terminal will be connected to shore via a 26-inch offshore pipeline of 8.5km length, plus a 2.6 km onshore pipeline and a parallel fibre optic cable.

ExxonMobil Corp.,  the largest US oil company and leading LNG producer and a partner of Qatar, will have its third-quarter earnings impacted by price shifts as it also found a buyer for its stake in the Adriatic LNG import terminal offshore the northeast coast of Italy.

Adriatic LNG, the ExxonMobil-owned company that operates the largest liquefied natural gas regasification terminal in Italy, has launched the accreditation phase for the 2023 open season aimed at operators interested in acquiring capacity.

The European Union is moving forward with its plan to seek pooled natural gas purchases under a programme called AggregateEU and set to be launched in June with the aim of reducing prices and increasing efficiency in fully replacing Russian pipeline gas supplies to Germany and the EU.

The proposed floating LNG terminal at the Italian Port of Piombino in northwest Italy has filled 86 percent of the regasification and cargo slots even amid a pending legal decision on whether the facility can start up as planned.

SNAM, the Italian LNG terminal and natural gas grid operator, and Milan-based energy major Eni have finalized the terms of an agreement for the acquisition by SNAM of a 49.9 percent stake in a newly incorporated Italian company controlling natural gas pipelines connecting Algeria to Italy.

Italian LNG terminal and gas grid operator SNAM has agreed to buy a second floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) from BW LNG of Singapore after purchasing a first FSRU from Norwegian fleet owner Golar LNG.