LNG

QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil have agreed to independently market LNG produced at their joint venture Golden Pass LNG plant in Sabine Pass in Texas with the start-up set for 2024.

“By leveraging their unique customer insights, QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil will better serve their downstream customers while meeting increased global demand,” the companies said.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission formally approved the transformation of the existing Golden Pass import terminal located on the Sabine-Neches Waterway in Texas into an export plant back in December 2016.

The Qatar-ExxonMobil project has advanced at a slow pace because of doubts several years ago over market demand issues that have now been resolved and work is well underway to construct three liquefaction Trains with around 16 million tonnes per annum of output.

While the first Train is still scheduled to come on stream in 2024, the second Train is expected to follow six-to-eight months later and Train 3 six-to-eight months after that.

ExxonMobil said it would market 30 percent of Golden Pass LNG volumes.

Mutual growth

“We are continuing to build on our decades-long relationship with QatarEnergy and collaborating on mutual growth opportunities that help deliver the lower-emissions energy our world needs,” said Peter Clarke, head of ExxonMobil’s LNG business.

“Independently marketing these Golden Pass volumes will generate increased value and flexibility across ExxonMobil’s growing global LNG portfolio,” Clarke explained.

ExxonMobil affiliate ExxonMobil LNG Asia Pacific (EMLAP) has been provided the exclusive rights to market 30 percent of Golden Pass LNG volumes.

QatarEnergy Trading will market the remaining 70 percent.

“Previously, ExxonMobil and QatarEnergy used the Ocean LNG joint venture to market Golden Pass volumes to customers,” noted ExxonMobil.

ExxonMobil and QatarEnergy continued their investments in Golden Pass throughout the pandemic-related down cycle, keeping the expansion project on schedule.

“The project will add new LNG capacity, create thousands of jobs and generate billions of dollars of economic growth for the region,” said ExxonMobil.

ExxonMobil explained that it was planning for lower-emissions LNG to play an increasingly important role in its advantaged portfolio.

“The company plans to nearly double its LNG supply by 2030 as low-cost, capital-efficient projects like the Golden Pass expansion come online,” said the US major.

The US Department of Energy published its latest LNG monthly export data with European nations such as France, Spain, the Netherlands and Italy being joined by Japan in the list of leading destinations while Sempra’s Cameron LNG plant in Louisiana shipped the most expensive cargoes for a second month.

Tellurian Inc., the developer of the Driftwood LNG export project in Louisiana, has purchased more assets in the Haynesville Shale to boost feed gas resources when the plant comes on stream.

The Houston, Texas-based company entered into an agreement to purchase natural gas assets from the privately held companies EnSight IV Energy Partners LLC and EnSight Haynesville Partners LLC.

The purchase price was $125 million, subject to customary closing adjustments, and a contingent payment of $7.5M based on the price of natural gas and which may be payable in March 2023 under certain conditions.

Tellurian said it would fund the purchase with cash on hand and anticipates finalizing the acquisition of the EnSight assets in the third quarter of 2022.

Driftwood project owner Tellurian has existing gas field assets in the Haynesville Shale which extends through areas located in East Texas and Western Louisiana.

Tellurian produced 6.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas in the first quarter of 2022 compared with 4.9 Bcf for the previous quarter.

Its existing upstream assets in the Basin include 13,521 net acres and interests in 82 producing wells as of March 2022.

Export project

The Driftwood LNG export plant has permits to produce 27.6 million tonnes per annum of LNG and has 10-year offtake agreements with the likes of Shell North America and global commodities firms Vitol and Gunvor.

The Tellurian project involves constructing 20 mid-scale processing Trains, each with 1.38 MTPA of capacity, and built as five blocks of four Trains.

The Phase One development would include the first two of these blocks with 11 MTPA of output and two of three planned 235,000 cubic metres storage tanks and the first of three planned loading berths for LNG carriers.

On its new Haynesville assets, Tellurian said current net production was 45 million cubic feet of natural gas per day with the fields having 100 percent natural gas.

The purchase covers around 5,000 net acres in the core of the Haynesville Shale in DeSoto, Bossier, Caddo, and Webster Parishes and with 44 producing wells and five wells in progress.

With this deal Tellurian said that its Haynesville Shale acreage increased to 20,000 net acres, with 275 gross drilling locations and a net resource expected at 2 trillion cubic feet.

“We have been diligently growing our natural gas production and reserves in the Haynesville,” said John Howie, head of Tellurian’s natural gas fields.

“These assets provide Tellurian with both cash flow and a physical hedge for Driftwood LNG,” added Howie.

“The EnSight asset is a great fit with Tellurian’s existing position in the Haynesville Shale and allows us to step into an ongoing development program and bring on-line significant additional natural gas volumes in the fourth quarter of 2022,” he stated.

Burckhardt Compression, the Swiss LNG-equipment maker, is providing a comprehensive overhaul service for fleet owner Teekay LNG as part of a long-term service agreement between the two companies.

Teekay LNG has interests in 47 LNG carriers, 23 mid-size liquefied petroleum gas carriers and seven multi-gas carriers.

Part of Teekay’s LNG fleet is equipped with dual-fuel propulsion systems that use boil-off gas (BOG) for fuel to deliver cargoes around the world.

Each of these vessels is equipped with a Burckhardt-supplied Laby®-GI BOG compressor that supplies fuel to the main and auxiliary engines as well as the reliquefaction system and the gas combustion unit.

“After five years in operation, the compressor on the ‘Creole Spirit’ was due for a scheduled maintenance inspection during dry-dock in Singapore,” explained Burckhardt.

“Dry-dock maintenance projects are planned years in advance. With hundreds of specialist technicians and engineers working for dozens of suppliers, precision coordination by all those involved is essential,” added the company, based in Winterthur, northern Switzerland.

“The resources involved and the scale of these projects mean that everyone has to deliver their part perfectly for the on-time completion of the whole scheme,” said Burckhardt.

Burckhardt said its team planned and coordinated the numerous groups of contractors working on the compressor skid in the confines of the compressor machinery room to ensure optimum working safety and efficiency.

As the only BOG compressor on board, it is a crucial piece of equipment and the maintenance project was essential for continued availability.

“Thanks to more than a year’s planning, the service ran with Swiss precision and was completed within the 13 days allotted, ensuring the complete dry-dock program was also accomplished on time and without any safety incidents,” stated Burckhardt.

Preparations included tailor-made packing cases for all the parts that were shipped to the Singapore Service Center to ensure safe transportation.

Burckhardt’s on-site engineers were also able to quickly provide a solution to additional components of the control system that needed to be replaced.

With such a successful project, Teekay LNG has said that it appreciated the benefits of the partnership with Burckhardt, which adds considerable value to their operation.

“The fleet of LNG vessels equipped with the Laby®-GI BOG compressor will continue to deliver reliable service and contribute to reduced sulfur and CO2 levels,” added Burckhardt. 

The US government reported that the increase in the nation’s liquefied natural gas exports was supported by large prices differences between the benchmark Henry Hub and spot prices in Europe and Asia and forecast a surge in shipments through March 2022.

Commonwealth LNG, the export venture proposed for Cameron Parish in the US Gulf Coast state of Louisiana, has been informed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission of the launch of an environmental impact statement (EIS) process with firm deadlines.

New Fortress Energy of the US has followed up its agreement to develop a floating LNG facility offshore the port of  Colombo in the Asian nation of Sri Lanka by signing an accord to jointly develop a 350 megawatts gas-fired power plant.

Liquefied natural gas prices rose in the spot market for China, Japan and South Korea while European values also increased amid a steady stream of cargo liftings at a seasonal level from global liquefaction plants through April 4 and with a firmer oil price underpinning long-term supply contracts.

Golar LNG Partners, the owner of 10 vessels, said that growing underlying demand and limited new nameplate production additions through to 2023 will result in LNG prices that help the fuel’s competitiveness and support a more sustained increase in US-Asia trade and ton-mile demand for shipping.

Freeport LNG, the US export plant in Quintana Island in Texas, has despatched its 100th cargo after sending out its first shipment from the former import terminal just 14 months ago.