LNG

New Fortress Energy, the US LNG and power company that owns and operates facilities in five countries, has extended the schedules for first LNG at the floating liquefaction plant offshore Altamira in the Gulf of Mexico and the first cargo will now be shipped in July rather than June.

Wes Edens, Chairman and Chief Executive of New York-based NFE, had previously said that the first cargo from the FLNG facility was expected in June.

The FLNG production facility is located in Mexican waters of the Gulf of Mexico offshore the port of Altamira where there is already an onshore LNG import terminal.

“The company has made tremendous progress on its path towards the start of liquefaction operations,” said a statement from New Fortress, which is listed on the Nasdaq global exchange

“As of June 14, the work necessary to begin operations is complete and the company has also completed the full remainder of pre-commissioning activities,” explained NFE.

Revisions

“The company now expects to produce LNG in the next 10 days, and then expects to be able to deliver its first cargo in July,” the company added.

The FLNG facility has also received a positive ruling from the US Customs and Border Protection agency confirming that the transportation of LNG produced at NFE’s FLNG unit can transport cargoes on non-US Jones Act qualified vessels.

As a result of this ruling, NFE will be able to sell and deliver LNG produced at its FLNG facility offshore Mexico to US locations, including the territory of Puerto Rico.

The progress on FLNG in the Gulf of Mexico comes amid advances in import and power projects in the South American nation of Brazil.

NFE has now commenced operations in Brazil at both of its LNG import terminals and has 2.2 gigawatts of power plants under construction.

One of the NFE Brazilian terminals is located at Barcarena in the northeast state of Pará.

The second is at Santa Catarina, located in the state of the same name in the far south of Brazil.

NFE noted that along with the existing 630 megawatt power plant and a 25-year agreement, the Barcarena terminal would supply LNG to power capacity owned by NFE.

Stonepeak, the New York-based investment and asset management firm, has given a $300 million loan to California-based company Clean Energy Fuels Corp., the operator of one of America’s largest natural gas fuelling station networks.

The loan to Clean Energy Fuels, listed on the Nasdaq global exchange, is in the form of a senior secured term loan for a six-year period and will help with expansion plans.

“In addition to repaying existing loans, the financing from Stonepeak will provide Clean Energy with capital for new renewable natural gas (RNG) production facilities, as well as the expansion of the company’s fuelling infrastructure targeting the heavy-duty truck market,” said Clean Energy, based in Newport Beach, California.

The company currently provides RNG made from waste in the form of LNG and compressed natural gas (CNG) to hundreds of vehicle fleets every day.

Timely loan

“Stonepeak is one of the most well-respected infrastructure investment firms operating in the energy transition space and we’re excited to partner with them as we grow our RNG business,” said Clay Corbus, Senior Vice President for strategic development at Clean Energy.

“This financing agreement is very timely as we continue to see more RNG development opportunities come our way, and as we anticipate building additional stations to accommodate increased demand due to the arrival of the Cummins 15-liter natural gas engine,” the company explained.

Stonepeak, which has around $58 billion under management, said it regards RNG as a “practical and affordable energy solution for the transportation sector” and with good tailwinds.

“This, combined with its ability to curb fugitive methane emissions, makes it a critical part of decarbonization infrastructure, in our view,” said Michael Bricker, Senior Managing Director at Stonepeak.

“With its proven asset base and operating history, we believe that Clean Energy has differentiated itself both within this space and relative to earlier stage verticals and other platforms pursuing the energy transition. We look forward to partnering with the Clean Energy team in supporting the company’s next phase of growth,” Bricker explained.

Texas RNG

Clean Energy noted that it was currently developing a portfolio of RNG production facilities at dairy farms across the country.

The first project is producing RNG in Texas and supplying it to the transportation market in Oregon through the state’s low-carbon fuels program.

Clean Energy is also expanding its RNG fuelling infrastructure, which currently includes over 600 stations across North America.

This comes at a time when engine-maker Cummins Inc. is testing a new larger natural gas engine for heavy-duty trucks with companies like Walmart, Werner, Knight Swift and UPS.

“These fleets are experiencing an improved fuel economy with more torque and power than previous models, while at the same time dramatically reducing greenhouse-gas (GHG) and NOx emissions compared to diesel,” said the company.

“The 2024 commercial launch of the Cummins X15N engine is much anticipated by the industry,” it added.

The Stonepeak term-loan bears interest at 9.5 percent per annum. During the first two years, Clean Energy may elect to pay up to 75 percent of the interest in kind.

“In connection with this transaction, Clean Energy issued warrants to Stonepeak for the purchase of 10 million shares of common stock with an exercise price of $5.50 per share and 10 million shares of common stock with an exercise price of $6.50 per share,” said Clean Energy.

“The warrants expire on June 15, 2032 and are exercisable at any time after December 12, 2025,” the company added.

New Fortress Energy Inc., the US LNG-for-power company, has sold its stake in the Porto de Sergipe Power Plant in northeast Brazil along with its joint venture partner for around $1.3 billion.

New Fortress Energy Inc., the New York-based LNG-for-power project company, has signed two 20-year sale and purchase agreements with US company Venture Global, owner of the existing Calcasieu Pass LNG plant and developer of three other liquefaction and export projects in Louisiana.

New Fortress Energy has announced a cash distribution by Golar LNG Partners, an indirect subsidiary of New Fortress, the New York-based LNG-for-power company.

Golar LNG Partners said holders of common units representing limited partner interests of the LNG fleet owner had voted to approve the planned takeover by New Fortress Energy, the New York-based LNG and power project developer in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Tellurian Inc., the developer of a Gulf Coast plant in Louisiana with an associated pipeline and offering partners cargoes at $3.50 per million British thermal units, said the Asian market was rebounding as its own third-quarter losses narrowed.

Tellurian’s third-quarter net loss narrowed to $29.46 million from $39.60M in the same three months of 2019.

However, nine-month losses widened to $119.04M compared with $114.22M in the same period last year.

Tellurian said the value of its assets had dropped to $293 million at the end of September 2020 from $382.32M at the end of 2019.

Tellurian is developing a portfolio of natural gas production, LNG trading, and infrastructure that includes the Driftwood LNG export plant near Lake Charles with around 27 million tonnes per annum of output.

The company, listed on the Nasdaq global exchange, was upbeat about the recovery of the LNG global market.

“China and India LNG imports up 10 percent and 15 percent respectively through October year-on-year and the Japan-Korea-Marker prices proves the market rebound, with LNG imports back above 2019 levels in September-October,” said Tellurian in its November presentation to accompany the earnings statement .

The Houston, Texas-based company currently has Haynesville shale gas assets of 1.2 trillion cubic feet of resources and 46 million cubic feet per day of output.

Tellurian explained in the briefing that it holds 10,067 net acres in the Haynesville Shale.

Tellurian is planning a Driftwood gas pipeline project from the community of Gillis in northern Calcasieu Parish in Louisiana to the liquefaction plant on the coast.

There the company’s joint venture partners would be able to load free-on-board (FOB) LNG cargoes at an average price of $3.50 per MMBtu.

“Driftwood LNG is shovel ready, all permits secured and engineering is 30 percent complete, while $150M has been invested in the engineering, procurement and construction first phase,” the company explained. The EPC work will be carried out by leading global LNG plant builder Bechtel Inc..

Tellurian said its total third-quarter revenues from natural gas sales and LNG trading increased to $14.26M from $9.34M in the same three months of 2019.

Nine-month sales to the end of September amounted to $28.81M versus $19.63M in the prior-year period.

Tellurian said its natural gas production for the third quarter was around 4.1 billion cubic feet equivalent and remained flat, with an exit rate of 47 million cubic feet equivalent per day.

“Natural gas markets and prices have recovered worldwide,” said President and Chief Executive Meg Gentle in her earnings statement.

“Investment in new drilling and infrastructure is acutely needed to balance the market in 2021 and beyond,” she explained.

“Building liquefaction terminals as fully integrated partnerships is the only way partners will secure the lowest cost of gas and be protected from the market’s inherent volatility,” Gentle stated.

Tellurian ended its third quarter with around $77.9M in cash and cash equivalents and about $80.8M in current borrowings.

Oct 7 (LNG) – One of the world’s main LNG shipping-focused conferences, Capital Link’s Annual New York Maritime Forum, is taking place on a virtual basis over two days on October 14-15. The conference will feature senior executives from 50 leading maritime companies, financiers and industry participants. The event is organized in partnership with DNB ASA, Norway’s largest bank and in cooperation with Nasdaq and the New York Stock Exchange. Registration for the event is complimentary.

   “The digital format of the event this year transforms NYMF into a truly global event,” said the organizers. The Forum has been held in New York City for the past 11 years and covers liquefied petroleum gas and LNG issues in the international shipping markets. Speakers next week include: Tony Lauritzen, Chief Executive of LNG fleet owner Dynagas LNG Partners, Oyestein Kalleklev, CEO of Flex LNG and Mark Kremin, President and CEO of Teekay LNG Partners.

NextDecade, developer of the Rio Grande export project in Texas and listed on the Nasdaq global stock exchange, has missed its deadline to file first-quarter earnings and is expected to further delay its final investment decision.

Two of the main US export projects on Gulf Coast of Texas, Rio Grande LNG and Port Arthur LNG, as well as the Costa Azul venture in Mexico, are heading for delays of at least a year.