LNG

If US LNG volumes do eventually reach Europe, there is a huge capacity for Russia's Gazprom to beat them on costs of production and delivery, analysts said, stressing Asia will remain the key target market for cargoes from North America regardless of continued unrest in Ukraine.

Aug 21 (LNGJ) - Project sponsors of the $10 billion Cameron LNG project concluded debt financing and are expected to make their first draw-down in September.

Financing secured for the project amounts to $7.4 billion, based on commitments from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and 29 commercial lenders. Sponsors took FID on August 6.

Aug 21 (LNGJ) - Japan's largest oil and gas explorer Inpex has agreed to sell a 1.2% stake in Australia's Ichthys LNG project to Japanese utility Kansai Electric Power Co.

The deal reduces Inpex shareholding to 62.25% and follows Kansai's commitment to buy 800,000 tonnes of LNG per year from the project over a period of 15 years starting from 2017.

The liquefaction terminal, which counts Total and others as shareholders, is slated to start-up before the end of 2016.

LNG imports to Japan have reached a new record, surging 5.7% year-on-year to 7.84 million tons in July due to rising seasonal demand from utilities as the nuclear void continues, government data shows.

The insurance risk of Arctic LNG carriers, fitted with Azipod propulsion units and worth around $400 million, may not have been properly calculated, UK-based marine insurer Marsh warned.

U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz has stressed the Department of Energy will fast-track the export license review for the Alaska LNG project. "We will treat Alaska differently. The public interest is not an issue for us," he said at a briefing in Anchorage.

Aug 20 (LNGJ) - Hawaii and several other US island territories increasingly view imported LNG as a 'viable option' for expanding their fuel diversity, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Relatively low US natural gas prices, support this move as well asthe use of standardized cryogenic shipping containers which allows smaller volumes of LNG to be trucked, railed, and shipped.

The parliament of Mozambique has passed an amended petroleum law that authorizes the government to create "a special regime" for LNG processing in the offshore Rovuma Basin Areas 1 and 4, where Anadarko and Eni are operating with the aim of developing LNG export terminals.

Aug 20 (LNGJ) - Moody's expects that new investments by Japanese shipping companies Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL) and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha will keep their debt levels high and slow deleveraging.

Continued high debt leverage due to a rise in LNG tankers on order could trigger downgrades for NYK and MOL, the rating agency warned.

Prices for LNG spot cargoes into Asia have notched up for the second straight week, recovering to just under $11/MMBtu, after buyers bid close to $12/MMBtu in a tender Australia's Northwest Shelf (NWS) project for an unspecified number of cargoes loading from late August to late November.