LNG

PTT Group, the national energy company of Thailand, has started a joint venture with Tokyo Gas to help with fuel switching in the southeast Asian nation, including small-scale truck deliveries of liquefied natural gas.

Tokyo Gas and JERA Co. Inc., the leading Japanese utilities and LNG importers, have sold their combined 50 percent stake in a Mexican-based company operating five gas-fired power plants, including one close to the Gulf Of Mexico LNG import terminal at Altamira.

The Mexican company MT Falcon Holdings owns five natural gas combined-cycle power plants (CCPPs) in northeast Mexico and Tokyo Gas and JERA have sold their respective 30 percent and 20 percent stakes.

Each power plant has had long-term power purchasing agreement with Mexico’s state-owned Federal Electricity Commission.

Both Tokyo Gas and JERA have entered into sale and purchase agreements with Actis GP LLP, a London-based private equity firm with investments in global energy infrastructure.

The sales are expected to be completed by the end of March 2022 and are subject to certain approvals from Mexican government authorities.

“Tokyo Gas will enhance business expansion also in the global business such as renewable energy, gas and power supply, LNG infrastructure development, and contribute to the society through corporate growth with the experience and knowledge acquired from MT Falcon,” explained the Tokyo utility, which is aiming for more Asian investments.

The five MT Falcon plants have total generating capacity of 2,233 megawatts of power.

The value of the transactions with Actis were not disclosed, though the Japanese utilities seemed pleased with their sell-offs.

The power plant near the Mexican LNG import terminal at Altamira is a facility with 495 MW of capacity.

Three of the other plants are at Rio Bravo and the fourth is at Saltillo.

JERA also indicated that it preferred its investment portfolio to show more growth in Asia than in the Americas.

“JERA will continue to renew its portfolio going forward, selling assets and reinvesting the proceeds as it optimizes its asset allocation for compatibility with a changing business environment,” said JERA.

The company is the largest Japanese LNG buyer with 35 million tonnes per annum of volumes and controls a fleet of 20 LNG carriers.

JERA is Japan’s biggest fossil-fuel generator being owned jointly by Tokyo Electric Power Co. and Chubu Electric, the two largest power companies.

The joint venture company currently operates and provides fuel for a total of 26 power plants in Japan and imports LNG into 11 of Japan’s network of 37 terminals.

The Tokyo Gas LNG portfolio currently amounts to around 14 MTPA and the utility controls a fleet of 10 ships to deliver to its four import terminals, three around Tokyo Bay and one at Hitachi in Ibaraki Prefecture.

Oct 12 (LNGJ) - Japanese utility Tokyo Gas is still a big part of the plan by First Gen Corp. of the Philippines to advance with the LNG import terminal project for Batangas City. Tokyo Gas President Uchida Takashi and First Gen President Francis Giles B. Puno recently signed a joint cooperation agreement to that effect. It follows on from the joint development agreement signed at the end of 2018 on developing an interim offshore LNG terminal in Batangas in southern Luzon island.

   “With the JCA, the parties will transition to the construction of a floating storage and regasification unit, with the aim of introducing LNG to the Philippines as early as in the second half of 2022,” said Tokyo Gas. “Under the terms of the JCA, the two companies will jointly construct, operate and maintain the interim offshore LNG terminal including converting the existing jetty into a multi-purpose jetty and constructing an adjoining onshore gas receiving facility,” added the Japanese company, which will have a 20 percent interest in the construction and operation of the project.

Inpex Corp., the largest Japanese exploration and production company and an Australian LNG plant operator, said it concluded a loan refinancing agreement for a portion of the loans taken out to develop the Ichthys facility near Darwin.

The company said the refinancing arrangements covered project finance loans arranged in 2012 with export credit agencies (ECAs) and commercial banks.

Total project finance loans for the Ichthys project amounted to approximately US$15.6 billion, of which the new refinanced amount covered in the latest agreement is US$8.3Bln.

The agreement involves seven ECAs and 28 commercial banks.

Inpex said the agreement includes loan conversions and improved borrowing conditions.

“The loan refinancing agreement is the result of a refinancing bid formally issued by Inpex in March 2020 with the objective of improving borrowing conditions, based on the Project achieving financial completion in December 2019 and continuing to sustain stable production operations,” explained the Japanese company.

Inpex is operator of the Ichthys plant at Bladin Point near Darwin and is also developing the Abadi LNG project in Indonesia with Royal Dutch Shell.

The plant came on stream in 2018 and produces almost 9 million tonnes per annum of LNG from two processing Trains.

Shares in Ichthys LNG held by Inpex amount to around 66 percent of equity, while French major Total has 26 percent.

Micro-stakes are held by CPC Corp. of Taiwan and Japan’s main utilities and LNG buyers, JERA Co. Inc., Tokyo Gas, Osaka Gas, Kansai Electric and Toho Gas.

“The project’s smooth progress despite the impact of the decline in oil prices caused by the spread of Covid-19 and other factors was evaluated favorably,” stated Inpex.

“Accordingly, Inpex received commitments from financial institutions exceeding the amount expressed in the refinancing bid,” it added.

Inpex said it believed that the refinancing agreement would enhance the value of the Ichthys project by reducing the financial commitments.

“Furthermore, the agreement is part of INPEX’s cost reduction initiatives under the company’s basic policy in response to the decline in oil prices and is expected to contribute to improving the resilience of the Inpex Group’s business structure,” it explained.

“Inpex will continue to lead efforts to sustain stable operations at the project with the understanding and cooperation of all its stakeholders,” said the company.

“These include the project’s joint venture participants, the local communities, the Australian federal government and the governments of the Northern Territory and Western Australia,” it stated.

Japanese spot liquefied natural gas cargoes delivered in October cost almost half the price of a year ago but cost 0.50 per million British thermal units more than in the previous month even amid an excess of supplies weighing down the market.

Tokyo Gas, the Japanese utility and importer of 14 million tonnes per annum of LNG, said fiscal half-year net sales from April to September increased by 9.4 percent as it benefited from the nations liberalization of the utility sector and from diversifying and expanding the sources of its LNG imports.