LNG

New Fortress Energy Inc. the US developer of floating LNG production and import terminal and power projects, has signed agreements to provide gas-fired power and natural gas to the US Caribbean territory of Puerto Rico.

NFE said its Puerto Rican subsidiaries, NFE Power PR and NFEnergia, had entered into agreements with the US-based industrial and energy company, Weston Solutions, for the installation and operation of 150 megawatts of additional power generation at the Palo Seco Power Plant in Puerto Rico as well as the supply of natural gas.

“Weston has won a task order to supply the temporary power generation to support the overall mission of the island’s grid stabilization at the Palo Seco Power Plant under its US Army Corps of Engineers Omaha Rapid Disaster Infrastructure contract,” explained NFE.

“The 150 MW of dual-fuel generators are expected to enable maintenance and repair work of Puerto Rico’s power system and grid,” added the New York-based company.

Wes Edens, the Chairman and Chief Executive NFE, said he was pleased to partner with Weston and support this “critical mission” to improve grid stability in Puerto Rico.

Federal help

“The Federal Government is providing much-needed resources to Puerto Rico’s recovery and this project will help enable the transition to a cleaner, more affordable and reliable energy system,” stated Edens.

NFE on March 7 had reported increased annual revenues and net profits as its array of projects advanced.

The total annual revenues of NFE jumped almost 80 percent to $2.36 billion, up from $1.32Bln in 2021.

NFE’s annual net profits amounted to $185M compared with $93M in 2021.

The company also completed the Barcarena LNG import terminal in Brazil and expects to deliver first gas to the industrial customer, Norsk Hydro, later in 2023.

NFE said construction of its Fast LNG production units was progressing rapidly with the first FLNG unit expected to achieve mechanical completion in the Spring of 2023 and commence operations by mid-2023, explained NFE.

Ship venture

NFE also closed a $2Bln transaction to form a joint venture called Energos Infrastructure with US equity fund Apollo Asset Management in which NFE holds long-term charters for 10 LNG vessels.

Then in response to the European energy crisis, the Eems Energy Terminal in The Netherlands commenced operations in September 2022 utilizing NFE's “Energos Igloo” FSRU.

The company also finalized its partnership terms with state-backed energy company Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex) to jointly develop the Lakach deepwater natural gas field in the Gulf of Mexico and to deploy a “Fast LNG” unit to that location.

Golar LNG Ltd, the operator of conventional carriers, floating import and export terminals and a power affiliate backed by its fleet of 27 ships, reported business progress while posting a first-quarter loss amid increased operating revenues.

Golar reported a net loss of $104.24 million for the first quarter compared with $41.74M of losses in the same three months of 2019.

However, total operating revenues were higher at $122.55M versus 114.28M in the year-ago quarter.

“Golar is pleased to report Q1 operating revenues and adjusted EBITDA of $76.2M, that were driven by a solid performance in FLNG, with 100 percent commercial uptime on ‘Hilli Episeyo’ (Cameroon FLNG exports), and strong seasonal results in Shipping,” said Iain Ross, Chief Executive of Golar LNG.

At the Golar Power affiliate, the 1.5 gigawatts Sergipe power plant in northeast Brazil reached its Commercial Operation Date acceptance which triggered earnings under the 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and the associated FSRU “Golar Nanook” charter.

Golar LNG said that the first three small-scale customers have also now been formally signed up and LNG distribution operations are expected to start in 2021.

“This short time to cash flow and the very strong project return confirms the attractiveness of our small-scale business,” said the company.

“To date, a further 200 potential customers have signed letters of intent to pursue various small-scale opportunities with Golar Power, demonstrating the robust consumer appetite to reduce both energy costs and environmental footprints,” it added.

Among other highlights, Golar LNG said the power unit entered into a partnership with Petrobras Distribuidora S.A. to facilitate a nationwide rollout of small-scale LNG supply to Brazil's transportation and industrial sectors.

Golar Power also signed an accord with the Brazilian state government of Pernambuco to develop an LNG import terminal in the Port of Suape.

“We also expect to finalize arrangements for locating a Floating Storage Unit (FSU) at Suape over the course of the year,” said Golar.

The affiliate is additionally working with BR Distribuidora S.A to overlay its geographical coverage of LNG distribution onto BR Distribuidora’s 7,600 Brazilian fuel stations.

“This will optimize the roll-out of the necessary infrastructure to convert current diesel, heavy fuel oil and coal consumers to cleaner and cheaper LNG through the provision of a stable and secure LNG supply,” it said.

The floating LNG production from the “Hilli Episeyo” hull deployed offshore Cameroon in West Africa is heading for its 40th export cargo with 100 percent commercial uptime maintained.

Golar also noted that regarding the “FLNG Gimi” being built for production offshore Mauritania and Senegal in West Africa, the company received a “force majeure” claim from UK major BP in relation to a delay in the order of 12 months to the target connection date.

“We are in advanced and positive discussions with our main building contractor, Keppel Shipyard Limited, and with engineering topsides subcontractor, Black and Veatch, on a revised cost and time schedule for the ‘FLNG Gimi ‘conversion that can be implemented as a contingency in response to the 12-month delay claimed by BP on its Tortue project,” Golar explained.

In the LNG Shipping segment, Golar said it expected second-quarter time charters to be at around $40,000 per day, with utilization of at least 80 percent of the fleet based on fixtures to date and the prevailing spot market.

“The current chartering strategy to de-risk the business by targeting more fixed and floating coverage has been successful and we intend to fix more portfolio term-based deals to further de-risk shipping exposure and to hedge expected volatility,” said Golar LNG.

“Except for the ‘Golar Tundra’, scheduled to dry-dock during June, no other dry-docks are planned this year,” it added.

Feb 25 (LNGJ) - Centrica, the UK energy and utility company, and a power company in the small northeast Brazilian state of Sergipe, have helped commission the Golar Power-led LNG import terminal project in the South American nation. The Centrica-chartered LNG vessel, the “Singapore Energy”, delivered 95,000 cubic metres of LNG by a ship-to-ship operation to the “Golar Nanook” Floating Storage and Regasification Unit located 8.5 kilometres off the coast. The FRSU is connected by pipeline to a combined-cycle gas-fired power plant, the largest in Latin America, owned by Centrais Elétricas de Sergipe S.A. (CELSE).

   “We are happy to start this collaboration with Golar and CELSE and pleased to have safely completed the ship-to-ship transfer,” said Jonathan Westby, Co-Managing Director of Centrica Energy Marketing and Trading and Global Head of LNG. “This demonstrates Centrica’s growing global LNG trading optimisation and operations capability,” Westby added.

Golar LNG Chairman Olav Troim apologized to shareholders about the recent earnings disappointments and expressed confidence about strategy and the key role of natural gas in the energy mix for many years to come, leading to a rise in the two Golar shares listed on the Nasdaq global exchange, one by more than 5 percent.

Golar LNG, the owner and operator with its affiliates of a fleet of 27 vessels, has been experiencing setbacks in plans to spin off shipping operations and to become an infrastructure company in gas-fired power joint ventures.