LNG

Laurent Poidevin, FMC Technologies

Some call them hoses, some say flexible pipes, we call them rigid pipes and swivel joints, or articulated Loading Arms, but our original solutions both for side-by-side transfer or for stern-to-bow transfer, also called tandem transfer, are among the most flexible to date.

Tor Skogan, Vice President Gas, and Lars Sannes, Senior Project Manager, Moss Maritime, Norway

The Moss spherical LNG containment tank has become synonymous with the LNG industry and the design, safety and operational features of the tank are as relevant now and will be in the future as they were 40 years ago this year when development began.

By Paul Sullivan and Paul Kirkup, Whessoe Oil & Gas

Although pre-stressed double concrete cryogenic tanks have been constructed and commissioned in the past, this type of tank has not been constructed within the current regulatory context.

Masaru Ikeda, Osaka Gas, Japan

Himeji LNG terminal in Japan boasts some 20 years of experience in using LNG cold energy at its processing and power generating facilities.

The cumulative amount of LNG applied to cold energy utilization reached about 60 percent of the total amount vaporized at the terminal.

Susan Walther, David Franklin, Pat Ross and Brad Hubbard, Mustang Engineering, Houston

The race is on to construct the first floating vessel that will produce LNG offshore.

Floating Production, Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessels have been used in the oil and liquefied petroleum gas businesses over the past two decades.

A round up of the latest company news and developments

Companies help fund protection of LNG assets but Congress told more resources needed

Concern has been expressed in a report to the US Congress about the financial capability and the level of support being accorded to the US Coast Guard to carry through its planned security program for LNG carriers and facilities.

By Mark J. Roberts, Adam A. Brostow, Vincent Coakley and Yu-Nan Liu

Recent improvements in the manufacturing and shipping capability of Main Cryogenic Heat Exchangers (MCHE’s) together with the continued development of compressors and drivers offer the LNG industry the possibility of a new generation of LNG trains.

These synergistic developments now allow efficient single train process designs ranging from 3 to 8 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) for the well proven propane pre-cooled mixed refrigerant (C3MR) process to over 10 MTPA for the AP-X® process.

LNG Journal Asia Editor

India’s LNG import facilities are slowly expanding as Petronet LNG goes ahead with the development of the new Kochi terminal in the south of the country after a difficult engineering, procurement and construction process.

The Kochi terminal, which will be located at Puthu Vypeen Island in the state of Kerala, will have an initial capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG with provisions for a doubling of the send-out rate at a later date.

As the worldwide demand for hydrocarbon-based fuels continues to rise, liquefied natural gas has become a key source of energy in the Western hemisphere as there are no potential sources of pipeline gas that could meet all the demand.

Countries in Western Europe, as well as nations such as India, Mexico, China and Chile have built, or are planning to build, LNG import terminals, while countries such as Japan and Korea historically have relied on import terminals for their natural gas needs.

Given the current increase in natural gas consumption, an expansion of a completed LNG import terminal is almost inevitable.