LNG

TC Energy Corp., whose main current project is the building of the Coastal GasLink pipeline for the LNG Canada venture, has agreed to sell 40 percent stakes for C$5.2 billion (US$3.9Bln) in the two US assets, Columbia Gas Transmission and Columbia Gulf Transmission, the transporters of substantial US LNG feed-gas volumes.

Canadian liquefied natural gas will be in the spotlight as the world’s energy leaders take the stage at LNG2023, the pre-eminent meeting of the international LNG industry set to take place soon in Vancouver in British Columbia.

The LNG and natural gas industry will meet from July 10 to July 13 for a conference and exhibition hosted by the Canadian Gas Association (CGA) and which is the 20th edition of the largest triennial LNG event.

Up to 15,000 delegates and stakeholders from more than 85 countries are expected to attend LNG2023.

The organisers said that the event would feature more than 250 speakers and 150 exhibitors, providing delegates an essential voice in the “vital discourse on LNG’s role in ensuring future energy stability, sustainability and affordability” in the years to come.

“Canada is on the cusp of becoming an LNG exporting leader in a world demanding reliable, sustainable sources of responsibly produced energy,” says Jason Klein, the Chief Executive of LNG Canada, the Shell-led project in BC. Klein will open the conference on July 10 with a leadership dialogue session.

Global security

Klein intends to talk about ways the LNG Canada joint venture under construction in Kitimat on the traditional territory of the Haisla Nation can help provide global energy security while reducing global greenhouse-gas emissions by supplying LNG to displace coal as an energy source in Asia.

“Our future LNG business will provide security of supply for global markets that rely on Canada’s natural gas reserves to fuel their economies, reduce global GHG emissions as natural gas replaces the use of coal and brings significant economic growth and stability to British Columbia,” Klein explained.

Along with the many Canadian delegates and exhibitors, several Canadian industry and Indigenous leaders will represent the country at the global event.

Crystal Smith, Chair of the First Nations LNG Alliance, and Sharleen Gale, Chief Councillor of the Fort Nelson First Nation, will join energy leaders in discussing the important role LNG projects play in Indigenous reconciliation.

Also set to speak is Greg Ebel, CEO of Canada-based Enbridge Inc., which is a leading pipeline natural gas company and a growing supplier of North American LNG feed gas. Ebel will discuss LNG’s role in “facilitating an orderly” energy transition.

Mike Rose, President and CEO of energy company Tourmaline, has said he will focus on how the environmental impact of the LNG supply chain has been reduced through innovations in methane and carbon emissions mitigation.

The Canadian Gas Association said it intended to showcase Canadian organizations and innovations in a dedicated Canadian industry pavilion.

“CGA members include energy distribution and transmission companies, equipment manufacturers, and suppliers of goods and services to the industry and meet 38 percent of Canada’s energy needs,” the body noted.

Essential forum

Mel Ydreos, Executive Director of LNG2023, said the event would be an essential forum to understand the evolving policy environment and the latest technological advances.

“LNG will be crucial to resolving the global energy crisis and securing a reliable pathway to deeper decarbonisation,” stated Ydreos.

LNG2023 is presented by the International Gas Union (IGU), GTI Energy and the International Institute of Refrigeration (IIR).

For information or tickets visit www.lng2023.org

China’s Offshore Oil Engineering Co. (COOEC), a unit of state-owned China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC), said a vessel was enroute from Qingdao port in Shandong province to British Columbia carrying the final two modules for the LNG Canada joint venture.

TC Energy Corp., the Canadian natural gas pipeline company, reported strong four-quarter results from US and Mexican activities, though posted a huge quarterly impairment charge related to the rising costs of the Coastal GasLink pipeline for LNG Canada and this meant a quarterly loss.

TC Energy Corp., the North American pipeline and resources company with large-scale natural gas connections for the LNG sector in the US and Canada, has held its annual Investor Day with project and earnings forecast updates.

Oct 12 (LNGJ) - The 174,000 cubic metres capacity LNG carrier “British Listener” is scheduled to arrive this weekend in the Rovuma Basin of Mozambique, according to shipping data. The arrival coincides with expectations of the first commercial cargo lifting from the “Coral-Sul FLNG” floating production project. The destination of “British Listener” is listed as Porto Amelia in Cabo Delgado province near where the FLNG hull is deployed.

   The “Coral-Sul FLNG” production vessel has been receiving gas from the Rovuma Basin resources for the start of annual output of 3.4 million tonne per annum. Italy’s Eni is upstream operator of the FLNG project along with Area 4 licence partners ExxonMobil Corp., China National Petroleum Corp., Galp Energia of Portugal, Korea Gas Corp. and Mozambique’s ENH, the state energy company.

Italian energy company Eni said the “Coral-Sul FLNG” production vessel offshore Mozambique has started receiving hydrocarbons from the Rovuma Basin ahead of using liquefaction capacity for annual output of 3.4 million tonne per annum.

Shell said LNG cargo exports had resumed from the Prelude floating LNG production facility offshore northwest Australia after safety checks had been passed by the regulator.

Italian energy engineering company Saipem has been awarded an additional $150 million Mozambique LNG contract relating to the “Coral-Sul FLNG” vessel, a production hull set to be onstream later in 2022 in the offshore Rovuma Basin.

The Australian energy safety authorities have ordered the closure of the “Prelude” floating liquefied natural gas production plant offshore northwest Australia after the latest incident in an electrical utility on board and reported on December 2.

The Shell-operated FLNG vessel is moored 400 kilometres north of the town of Broome on Western Australia’s Kimberley coast and has 3.6 million tonnes per annum of capacity.

The Australian National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA) issued the order for a deeper safety probe by Shell.

This means Shell will likely be halting the offloading of LNG cargoes from “Prelude” into 2022 while the unreliable power shutdown issues are investigated .

The direction from NOPSEMA means the FLNG hull, the largest in the world, will be off stream until Shell can convince the regulators that the problem has been permanently fixed.

NOPSEMA has directed Shell to review what happened on the Prelude between December 2 and 6 and then develop a detailed plan to implement “all necessary corrective actions.”

Shell must also provide NOPSEMA with monthly reports on its progress from early March 2022.

Onboard inspectors

Shell must additionally convince the safety regulator that it can safely recover essential power and other services after a power outage alarm sounds.

“The failure to restore reliable power was seen to represent an ongoing impact and risk to the health and safety of the personnel on the facility,” said the NOPSEMA statement.

After visiting the 488m-long vessel NOPSEMA inspectors concluded that Shell “did not have a sufficient understanding of the risks of the power system on the facility, including failure mechanisms, inter-dependencies and recovery” mechanisms.

According to Shell, smoke triggered the automatic fire detection and management systems in the early December incident and an evacuation of most of the 200 or so crew on board was started. All workers on the facility were accounted for and no injuries reported.

The Shell facility was previously shut down for 11 months after electrical issues. Operations only resumed in February 2021 following an “electrical trip” in early 2020 and three incidents which NOPSEMA had described at the time as “dangerous occurrences”.

For the Shell project, the Concerto gas field and the nearby Prelude field, with combined resources of around 3 trillion cubic feet, are providing the feed gas to produce the LNG.

The Prelude joint venture is owned 67.5 percent by Shell and 17.5 percent by Inpex Corp. of Japan, operator of the Australian Ichthys project.

A further 10 percent of Prelude is held by LNG buyer Korea Gas Corp. and 5 percent by CPC Corp. of Taiwan.