LNG

Chevron Corp. has agreed to acquire Nasdaq-listed PDC Energy in an all-stock transaction valued at $6.3 billion and boosting the US major’s holdings in US strategic basins such as the Permian.

Höegh LNG Holdings, the owner of 10 floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) and two conventional carriers, posted a quarterly loss because of operational issues and ships being out of contract ahead of being re-deployed.

Höegh reported a net third-quarter loss of $45.9 million, which was wider than the $3.14M loss posted in the same three months of 2021.

The Bermuda-based company, now owned by Norwegian interests and US equity funds managed by US bank Morgan Stanley, reported higher third-quarter revenues of  $96.09M versus $86.15M in the same quarter of 2021.

“The fleet delivered a stable operating performance in the third quarter,” said Höegh.

“However, the ‘Höegh Giant’ has been idle since late April following the termination of its FSRU contract and the ‘Höegh Gannet’ was idle for a period towards the end of the third quarter while repositioning to a yard for class renewal and modifications to be carried out in the fourth quarter to prepare the vessel for FSRU operations,” explained the company.

“Furthermore, ‘Neptune’ was out of service for a period in the third quarter for regular class renewal and maintenance,” it added.

Höegh said the following the surge in demand for FSRUs earlier this year, the company has secured long-term FSRU employment for its entire fleet.

Lithuania FSRU

Additionally, the Lithuanian charterer of the vessel “Independence” has declared the purchase option to acquire the FSRU in December 2024.

The FSRU has been in operation at the Baltic port of Klaipeda since October 2014 for a charter cost of around $68 million per annum.

The charterer of the “Independence” is the energy storage company Klaipėdos Nafta.

Höegh said that its main business focus now was to prepare its FSRU fleet for the start-up of the new contracts and to ensure the projects are delivered on time, except for the potential later start of the contract in Australia.

The company added that it had settled the differences of the cancellation of an FSRU deployment on the West Coast of India.

“Following Höegh’s termination of the ‘Höegh Giant’ FSRU contract in India in April, Höegh reached an agreement with the previous charterer (H-Energy) in July dropping all claims and counterclaims against a settlement amount to be paid by Höegh and the ‘Höegh Giant’ thereafter left India,” it explained.

“The vessel was modified and prepared for FSRU operations at a yard during October-November, and will be allocated to one of the group’s new FSRU contracts,” stated Höegh.

The company said that it was also still involved in pending arbitration with the charterer of “PGN FSRU Lampung”, the FSRU deployed in Indonesia.

Outlook

Höegh said in its outlook for the coming year that the company’s main operational focus was to prepare the FSRUs for start-up of their new contracts.

“Looking further ahead, the company will start considering potential growth opportunities including expansions of its FSRU fleet with newbuilds, or the conversion of LNG carriers to FSRUs to meet the increased demand for FSRUs,” it stated.

The group expects that the results for the fourth quarter of 2022 will be impacted by three FSRUs being out of service for modifications.

“The three FSRUs will be without revenue for a period, and costs involved with the modifications may be partly expensed as operating expenses and partly capitalized as investments depending on the nature of the costs incurred,” added Höegh.

The LNG shipping company, one of the sector’s pioneers, completed its own overhaul in 2022 with a merger and is owned by Larus Holding Limited, a 50-50 joint venture between Norway’s Leif Höegh & Co. Ltd. and US equity funds managed by Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners.

Chart Industries, the US LNG equipment-maker and industrial gases and clean energy company, has signed definitive agreements to acquire Howden, a leading UK-based global provider air and gas handling products and services, for a purchase price of $4.4 billion from affiliates of KPS Capital Partners LP.

Höegh LNG Holdings has signed a 10-year charter agreement for one of its floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) with the joint venture, the São Paulo Regas Company (TSRP) in Brazil.

The São Paulo facility will operated for TSRP, a subsidiary of Compass Gás and Energy and Comgás, Brazil’s largest gas distributor.

The Höegh LNG vessel, the “Höegh Gannet”, is assigned to the charter and operations are expected to start in late 2022 or early 2023.

The “Höegh Gannet” has cargo capacity of 170,000 cubic metres and regasification capacity of 1 billion standard cubic feet per day.

It is Höegh LNG’s second major charter deal in 2021 after Australian Industrial Energy (AIE) signed a long-term charter in November for an FSRU to operate at Port Kembla, south of Sydney

Under that agreement, the FSRU vessel “Höegh Galleon”, the newest FSRU in Höegh LNG’s fleet, will serve as the terminal.

The 170,000 cubic metres capacity “Höegh Galleon” has send-out capacity of 750 million standard cubic feet per day.

Collaboration

In addition, AIE and Höegh LNG agreed to collaborate on the future design and development of a new generation FSRUs capable of receiving clean fuels which can be used as part of “future green energy” supply chains.

Höegh LNG Holdings was acquired in a takeover by Norwegian interests and a unit of US investment bank Morgan Stanley.

Höegh shareholders approved an offer in March 2021 by a joint venture formed by Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners and Leif Höegh & Co., a family-owned shareholding for the takeover.

Höegh rival GasLog Ltd, the Greek-based LNG shipping fleet owner with 35 vessels currently operating, agreed a merger earlier in 2021 with a unit of US investment firm BlackRock.

GasLog entered into a merger agreement with BlackRock’s Global Energy & Power Infrastructure, part of the New York-based firm focused on long-term infrastructure investments in the energy and power sectors.

Teekay LNG Partners reported a jump in net income in the third quarter as the shipping company prepared for a December vote on a deal worth $6.2 billion to become the latest LNG fleet to be taken over by, or merged with, US equity fund interests.

Höegh LNG Partners, the US affiliate of Höegh LNG Holdings now partnered with the infrastructure unit of US investment bank Morgan Stanley, has seen its shares plunge over 60 percent after the dividend was slashed.

Höegh LNG Holdings, the Norwegian shipping company acquired in a takeover by Norwegian interests and a unit of US investment bank Morgan Stanley, posted a wider loss in the first quarter of 2021 as it reported setbacks in its tenders for projects.

Höegh LNG Holdings, the floating terminal projects company with 12 vessels and contracts for China and India, has been acquired in a takeover by Norwegian interests and a unit of US investment bank Morgan Stanley after a vote by shareholders held in Bermuda.

Chart Industries, the US LNG and industrial gases equipment provider, is planning an underwritten public offering of 4.9 million shares to fund a portion of the purchase price of its pending acquisition of Harsco Corp.’s Industrial Air-X-Changers business.

Pieridae Energy, the developer of the Goldboro LNG export project in the Canadian Atlantic Coast province of Nova Scotia, has posted widening second-quarter losses as it progresses with the venture that includes selling cargoes to German utility Uniper.