LNG

March 23 (LNGJ) - Two Russian LNG cargoes are headed for Belgium in the next week and two US shipments are scheduled for delivery to the Netherlands, according to shipping data. The tanker “Nikolay Yevgenov” with 172,600 cubic metres of capacity is due to berth at the Belgian import terminal at Zeebrugge on March 25 with a Yamal cargo lifted on March 17. A second delivery is due from the Russian export plant at Sabetta on March 28 on board the 172,000 cubic metres capacity carrier “Yakov Gakkel”.

   Deliveries to the Netherlands from the US will include a shipment from the Cameron plant in Louisiana scheduled to be delivered to the Eemshaven facility on March 24 by the “Marvel Pelican” carrier with 155,000 cubic metres capacity. Another US cargo is due for delivery on March 30 to the Gate terminal in Rotterdam by the 174,000 cubic metres capacity vessel “LNG Endeavour” and lifted on March 18 from the Freeport plant in Texas.

March 22 (LNGJ) - The “Vivit Arabia LNG” carrier with 174,000 cubic metres of capacity is scheduled to deliver a US cargo on March 23 to the UK Isle of Grain LNG  import terminal on the Medway River in Kent, according to shipping data. The cargo was lifted on March 8 from the Calcasieu Pass export plant near Lake Charles in Louisiana.

March 22 (LNGJ) - Genel Energy plc, the London-listed oil and natural gas company with interests off the beaten track in Kurdistan and Somaliland, reported annual revenues of $432.7 million, an increase on the previous year’s $334.9M and also posted operating profit of $18.3M.

   “We have a very strong balance sheet with $495M of cash, net cash of $228M, at the end of 2022 and no debt maturity until 2025,” said the company. Genel has stakes in licence areas such as the Tawke and Sarta fields in Kurdistan and is preparing drilling of the Toosan-I well in Somaliland.

March 21 (LNGJ) - Two LNG cargoes area heading for the two UK import terminals at the Port of Milford Haven, according to shipping data. The “GasLog Gibraltar” with 174,000 cubic metres capacity is due to berth on March 22 at the Dragon terminal with a cargo from the US plant at Elba Island near Savannah, Georgia.

   A second delivery is scheduled on March 24 at Milford Haven’s South Hook facility when the Q-Max carrier “Rasheeda” with 260,900 cubic metres of capacity will discharge a cargo lifted from Ras Laffan in the Arabian Gulf on March 5.

March 20 (LNGJ) - Gaztransport and Technigaz (GTT), the French LNG storage technology company, has taken first place for a fourth consecutive year in list of patent applications from medium-sized companies made to the French Patent and Trademark Office, l’Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle.

   GTT said it had 57 patents published in 2022. “In the ranking of the Top 50 patent applicants in all categories, GTT is in 23rd place and has moved up seven places compared to the 2021 list,” said the Paris-based company. GTT said the ranking highlighted its “strong dynamic for innovation” and with a high research and development budget representing an average of 10 percent of the group’s turnover.

March 17 (LNGJ) - A joint venture comprising JGC Holdings of Japan and South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering & Construction of South Korea have been awarded downstream contracts for the Papua New Guinea LNG expansion project. JGC and Hyundai were awarded a front-end engineering and design (FEED) contract and an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) estimation contract as part of a competition by PNG plant operator ExxonMobil on behalf of the Papua LNG project partners.

   The project is to build 4 million tonnes per annum of LNG liquefaction capacity adjacent to the existing PNG LNG plant located northwest of the capital Port Moresby. It also includes the use of 2 MTPA of liquefaction capacity in the existing two Trains at PNG LNG. The expansion will use feed gas from the onshore Elk-Antelope gas field.

March 16 (LNGJ) - Two cargoes are heading for the Netherlands and Belgium next week as European LNG prices decline. The “Golar Celsius”, a vessel with 154,950 cubic metres capacity, is scheduled to deliver a US cargo on March 21 to the Dutch Gate terminal in Rotterdam and which was lifted on March 7 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana.

   The Bahamas-flagged “Rudolf Samoylovich, with capacity of 170,000 cubic metres, is due to berth on March 23 at the Zeebrugge terminal in Belgium with a Russian cargo lifted on March 15 from the Yamal export plant operated by Novatek in northern Siberia.

March 15 (LNGJ) - Belgium is scheduled to receive two LNG cargoes from Russia this week. The “Nikolay Urvantsev”, a vessel with 170,000 cubic metres capacity, was scheduled to berth on March 15 at the Belgian import terminal at Zeebrugge, according to shipping data. The cargo was lifted on March 8 from the Yamal plant in northern Siberia.

   A second Russian cargo was due at Zeebrugge on March 19 on board the 172,000 cubic metres capacity “Vladimir Voronin”. The shipment was lifted on March 11 from the Yamal Peninsula export terminal.

March 14 (LNGJ) - The “LNG Sokoto” tanker with 137,500 cubic metres of capacity berthed early on March 14 at the UK Isle of Grain LNG import terminal on the Medway River in Kent with a shipment from the Nigerian Bonny Island export plant, according to shipping data. The cargo delivered to UK company National Grid plc was lifted from the Nigerian plant on February 26.

March 13 (LNGJ) - The UK was scheduled to receive an LNG cargo at the end of the week from the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago as UK and European natural gas wholesale and LNG prices rebounded to one-month highs as cooler weather hit Europe. The UK National Balancing Point price rose to the equivalent of $16.100 per million British thermal units.

   The vessel “Maran Gas Agamemnon” with 174,000 cubic metres capacity was due to discharge a cargo on March 19 at the Dragon LNG import terminal at the port of Milford Haven, according to shipping data. The cargo was lifted on March 7 from the Point Fortin export plant in Trinidad.

March 10 (LNGJ) – The Lithuanian fuels company Klaipedos Nafta, which also operates the Baltic state’s floating LNG import terminal, has been engaged by Italian grid operator SNAM to provide support services for the future commissioning of the proposed Piombino LNG FSRU project on the Italian West Coast.

   “Klaipedos Nafta has established a reputation as a reliable LNG terminal operator and project developer and will support SNAM in the FSRU installation and subsequent commissioning and testing of the floating terminal,” said the Lithuanian company.

March 9 (LNGJ) - Freeport LNG Development said it received regulatory approvals from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration to restart Train 1, the final required re-start at Freeport’s three-Train liquefaction facility at Quintana Island in Texas. “Freeport LNG's Trains 2 & 3 returned to full commercial operation in recent weeks, reaching production levels in excess of 1.5 billion cubic feet per day,” said the company.

   “As the recommissioning of Freeport's liquefaction facility continues and Trains are restarted, changes in feed-gas flows and production rates are to be anticipated, given the duration of the plant's outage. As previously stated, a conservative ramp-up profile to establish full three-Train production is anticipated to occur over the next few weeks,” Freeport stated.

March 8 (LNGJ) - Chevron Corp.’s new energies division has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Japan’s largest LNG buyer JERA Co. Inc. that provides a framework for their collaboration on carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in the United States and Australia. “This MOU has the potential to expand the significant LNG relationship that Chevron and JERA have today and further demonstrates the commitment and dedication both companies have to advancing lower carbon solutions,” said a statement.

   “We have a long-standing LNG relationship with JERA that continues to progress, with the intent of bringing affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner solutions to our customers,” added Chris Powers, Vice President of Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage at Chevron.

March 7 (LNGJ) - Orders for alternative fuel vessels such as those powered by LNG picked up in February after a slump from the end of 2022. European classification society DNV said that there were 10 orders placed for LNG-fuelled vessels last month and all of them were containerships.

   However, there were also 22 orders for ships to be powered by methanol. DNV said that so far in 2023 the total order figure for alternative fuel vessels stands at 34. “LNG offers immediate an reduction of greenhouse-gas even when fossil LNG is used,” said Martin Wold, Principal Consultant in DNV’s Maritime Advisory business. “Building a methanol-fuelled vessel is less expensive, but green methanol will be needed sooner than green LNG and there is currently high uncertainty on future availability and prices,” Wold added.

March 6 (LNGJ) - China Gas Holdings, one of the leading Chinese city-gas company that recently agreed to buy LNG cargoes from Venture Global’s Plaquemine liquefaction and export project in Louisiana, has expanded its stake by another 32.4 percent at a cost of $245 million in the city-gas company of Hohhot City and seven surrounding counties and development zones in Inner Mongolia.

   “Upon completion of the transaction, China Gas will hold 96.5 percent equity interest in the target company and the remaining 3.5 percent will be held by Inner Mongolia State-owned Capital Operation Co.,” said China Gas.

March 3 (LNGJ) - Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) has set the final price for its over-subscribed initial public offering of 5 percent of its spun-off natural gas and LNG unit, ADNOC Gas. The main energy company of the United Arab Emirates set up the ADNOC Gas subsidiary on January 1 to group its world-scale gas processing operations and gas marketing company.

   The new subsidiary at the centre of the IPO combines the operations, maintenance and marketing of the ADNOC Gas Processing and ADNOC LNG units into one consolidated business. The ADNOC Gas share price was set on March 3 at 2.37 dirhams ($0.645) per share, near the top end of the price range that was set at 2.25 to 2.43 dirhams a share. Proceeds from the IPO came to around $2.5 billion. ADNOC Gas shares are expected to begin trading on March 13.

March 2 (LNGJ) - The UK is scheduled to receive three more LNG cargoes in the next week at the port of Milford Haven. The 155,900 cubic metres capacity vessel “Wilforce” is due to discharge a US cargo at the South Hook terminal on March 3 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana.

   The carrier “Kool Boreas” with 170,200 cubic metres capacity is scheduled to deliver an Egyptian shipment on March 7 to the Dragon terminal at the Welsh port, according to shipping data. The cargo was lifted on February 26 from the Idku plant located east of the Egyptian port Alexandria. A third Milford Haven cargo will arrive at South Hook on March 9 from Sabine Pass on board the 170,800 cubic metres capacity carrier “Global Sea Spirit”.

March 1 (LNGJ) - NYK Line, the Japanese shipping company operating more LNG-powered vessels, said the car carrier “Jasmine Leader” had entered Hiroshima Port in Japan after being completed at China Merchants shipyard at Nanjing. “After completion, the vessel received LNG fuel from the ‘Kaguya’, an LNG bunkering vessel operated by Central LNG Marine Fuel in which Mitsui Osk Lines has a stake,” said NYK. “In the future, the ‘Jasmine Leader’ will be engaged in the transportation of finished vehicles for Mazda Motor Corp,” added NYK.

Feb 28 (LNGJ) - Excelerate Energy, the Houston-based LNG floating terminals specialist, and Calcasieu Pass LNG export plant operator Venture Global signed a 20-year LNG Sales and Purchase Agreement with Excelerate buying 700,000 tonnes per annum of cargoes on a free-on-board (FOB) basis from Venture Global’s Plaquemines facility being built on the banks of the Mississippi River south of New Orleans.

   “We are proud to enter this new strategic partnership with Venture Global, which supports our efforts to enhance energy security and accelerate the energy transition by delivering natural gas to our customers worldwide,” said Steven Kobos, President and Chief Executive of Excelerate.

Feb 28 (LNGJ) – The Belgian Zeebrugge LNG import terminal is scheduled to receive three Russian trans-shipment cargoes in the next week. The first is due to arrive on March 1 from the Yamal export plant in Arctic Russia onboard the “Vladimir Voronin”, according to shipping data. The ship with 172,000 cubic metres of capacity lifted the cargo from the Russian Sabetta export terminal on February 22.

   The 177,000 cubic metres capacity carrier “Eduard Toll” is expected at Zeebrugge with a second cargo on March 2 while the “Vladimir Rusanov” with 172,000 cubic metres capacity will berth on March 5 at the Belgian facility with a third shipment lifted on February 26, data showed.

Feb 27 (LNGJ) - The Norwegian-flagged LNG carrier “Ribera Duero Knutsen” with 173,400 cubic metres capacity was scheduled to berth on February 27 at the UK Isle of Grain import terminal on the Medway River in Kent with a cargo from the US. The shipment was loaded on February 15 at the Corpus Christi export plant in Texas operated by Cheniere Energy.

   Two further deliveries are scheduled for the UK on March 3 at the import terminals at the Welsh port of Milford Haven. The “LNG Prosperity” with 174,000 cubic metres capacity is due to discharge a cargo from Peru at the Dragon terminal. That cargo was lifted on February 2 from the Pampa Melchorita facility on the Pacific Coast of Peru. Also on March 3, the 173,400 cubic metres capacity vessel “Woodside Rees Withers” is due at the South Hook terminal with a shipment from the US Corpus Christi plant.

Feb 24 (LNGJ) - Pembina Pipeline Corp., the Calgary-based North American pipelines and terminals operator, said in its latest earnings statement that it planned to advance the development of two “transformational projects” in Canada, the Cedar LNG project and the Alberta Carbon Grid and expected a regulatory decision soon on the Cedar joint venture.

   Pembina has formed a partnership with the Haisla First Nation to develop the Cedar LNG project on the Douglas Channel of British Columbia. “Given Cedar LNG will be a floating facility, manufactured in the controlled conditions of a shipyard, it is expected that the project will have lower construction and execution risk,” stated Pembina. The company added that the Environmental Assessment was likely to be decided on by BC Ministers as well as the federal Minister of Environment and Climate Change in the first quarter of 2023.

Feb 23 (LNGJ) - Eni, the Italian oil and gas major, reported increased annual net profits of €13.31Bln ($16.08Bln) compared with €5.82Bln in the previous year. However, profits plunged in the fourth quarter to €550 million from €3.52Bln in the same three months of 2021 because of special items, including reduced fair-valued commodity derivatives of €1.1Bln, asset impairments of €900M and an extraordinary solidarity tax of €700M.

   Eni’s LNG sales in 2022 dropped by 14 percent to 9.4 million tonnes from 10.9MT in 2021, impacted by lower supply from Russia and Nigeria. In LNG project activities, Eni noted that in November the first loading of LNG produced from the Coral Sul FLNG project offshore Mozambique was completed. In December, as part of the Congo LNG project from Eni’s gas reserves in block Marine XII, a turn-key contract was signed to build, install and commission an FLNG vessel. Eni will pair the “Tango FLNG” vessel purchased earlier from Exmar to speed up development plans. Congo LNG output should reach 3 MTPA in 2025.

Feb 23 (LNGJ) - French LNG sector players, TotalEnergies and Air Liquide, have signed Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPA) with South African energy group Sasol for the supply of 260 megawatts capacity of renewable electricity over 20 years amid continuing power cuts in South Africa.

   TotalEnergies will develop a 120 MW solar plant and a 140 MW windfarm in the Western Cape province to supply around 850 GWh of green electricity per year to the Sasol’s Secunda site, located 700 kilometers further North-East, where Air Liquide operates the biggest oxygen production site in the world. “Power generation in South Africa is still 80 percent based on coal and power cuts occur daily. With these developments we are proud to support Air Liquide and Sasol for their supply of green electricity,” stated Vincent Stoquart, Senior Vice President for Renewables at TotalEnergies.

Feb 22 (LNGJ) - Gulfstream LNG, a proposed mid-scale LNG export project located on the shore of the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana plans to request that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) begins a pre-filing process after completion of the company’s current initial equity funding round. The Gulfstream project plans to start exporting volumes by 2029 from its mid-scale facility with 4 million tonnes per annum of output.

   The Gulfstream Chief Executive is Vivek Chandra who previously founded Texas LNG, an export project still under development . Under Chandra’s leadership as CEO, Texas LNG completed multiple funding and technical rounds and received its FERC permit. That project then then found engineering partners and was reported to be progressing towards its final investment decision.

Feb 22 (LNGJ) - At least two LNG deliveries are heading in the next week for the UK South Hook import terminal at the port of Milford Haven in Wales. The “Orion Sea” with 174,00 cubic metres capacity is scheduled to deliver a US shipment on February 24 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana.

   The first March cargo for the UK is being delivered to South Hook from Qatar on March 1 by the 212,000 cubic metres capacity Q-Flex vessel “Al Kharaitiyat”. It was lifted from Ras Laffan on February 12.

Feb 21 (LNGJ) - Three LNG cargoes are due in Europe in the next few days, heading for the UK, the Netherlands and Belgium. The UK is scheduled to receive a shipment from Angola at the Isle of Grain terminal southeast of London on February 23 from the “Sonangol Benguela” with 160,500 cubic metres of capacity. The cargo was lifted on February 7 from the southwest African nation’s Soyo plant, operated by Chevron.

   The 179,980 cubic metres capacity “Adriano Knutsen” is due to deliver a US shipment on February 24 to the Gate terminal in Rotterdam. The cargo was lifted on February 11 from the Corpus Christi plant in Texas operated by Cheniere Energy. The delivery for Belgium at Zeebrugge will come on February 24 from Qatar onboard the 147,800 cubic metres capacity vessel “Al Deebel”, which departed on February 6 from the Qatari plant at Ras Laffan.

Feb 20 (LNGJ) - Höegh LNG Holdings has signed a deal with CoolCo, a shipping investor group including Eastern Pacific Shipping and Golar LNG, to acquire the 2013-built LNG carrier “Golar Seal” with 160,000 cubic metres of capacity for an undisclosed sum. “The purchase price is in line with current market level for similar vessels. Höegh LNG expects to take delivery of the vessel in late March or April 2023 and subsequently employ the vessel in the carrier market on a term time charter,” said Höegh LNG.

   “We are very pleased to make this investment which underpins our growth ambitions. The vessel will be an excellent addition to our fleet, and provide flexibility to pursue FSRU conversion opportunities,” said Erik Nyheim, the President and Chief Executive of Höegh LNG.

Feb 17 (LNGJ) - Uniper, the German utility almost brought down by the stoppage of pipeline natural gas supplies from Russia’s Gazprom, reported an annual net loss of €19.1 billion ($20.4Bln) in its earnings just published. The Düsseldorf-based company noted that it had to receive a stabilization package from the German Federal finance agency to survive. Uniper’s bad luck was compounded as it was also a buyer of LNG cargoes from the US Freeport LNG plant in Texas closed by the June 8 fire. This happened several months before Uniper completed its North Sea Wilhelmshaven LNG terminal using the floating storage and regasification unit, the “Höegh Esperanza”.

   Uniper expects profits to recover in 2023 after last year's record loss, as it now has access to LNG amid falling prices. “The exceptionally swift construction of Germany’s first LNG terminal in Wilhelmshaven has demonstrated that Uniper is a reliable partner for complex infrastructure projects,” said Klaus-Dieter Maubach, the Chief Executive of Uniper who is now stepping down.

Feb 16 (LNGJ) - Shell said in a liquefied natural gas sector outlook that Europe’s increased need for LNG looks set to intensify competition with Asia for limited new supplies over the next two years. Total global trade in LNG reached 397 million tonnes in 2022. Shell added that European countries, including the UK, imported 121MT of LNG in 2022, an increase of 60 percent compared with 2021, which enabled them to withstand a slump in Russian pipeline gas imports following the invasion of Ukraine.

   “With reduced Russian pipeline gas, LNG is becoming an increasingly important pillar of European energy security, supported by the rapid development of new regasification terminals in northwest Europe. In contrast, China is evolving from being a rapidly growing import market to playing a more flexible role with an increased ability to balance the global LNG market,” stated the Shell report.

Feb 15 (LNGJ) - Belgium and the Netherlands are scheduled to receive a combined six LNG cargoes through February 24. The 172,600 cubic metres capacity vessel “Vladimir Vize” will discharge a cargo on February 17 at the Zeebrugge terminal in Belgium from the Yamal plant in Arctic Russia lifted on February 11, according to shipping data. A second cargo will arrive at Zeebrugge from Qatar on February 19 on the 210,000 Q-Flex vessel “Al Ruwais”. A third cargo for Belgium will be unloaded on February 24 from the Qatari vessel “Al Deebel” with 143, 000 cubic metres of capacity.

   Three LNG shipments are also headed for the Dutch Gate terminal in Rotterdam. The “Grace Freesia” with 171,000 of capacity was berthing on February 15 with a US cargo from Sabine Pass in Louisiana. The “Vivit Arabia” with 171,000 cubic metres capacity will unload a US cargo on February 18 in Rotterdam from Calcasieu Pass in Louisiana. Then on February 24 the 180,000 cubic metres capacity carrier “Adriano Knutsen” will discharge a shipment from Corpus Christi LNG in Texas lifted on February 11, the data showed.

Feb 14 (LNGJ) - Australian LNG operator Santos has won environmental approval for an offshore project relating to the Dorado oil and gas development in the Bedout basin offshore Western Australia and with LNG potential. The field is located about 160 kilometres (100 miles) north of Port Hedland near the Pilbara region of Australia.

  “Dorado is a proposed phased liquids and gas development, with an initial phase of liquids development with gas re-injection and the potential for a second phase development to recover and pipe the gas to the Western Australian domestic and LNG markets,” Santos said. “Dorado is an exciting development opportunity which is further enhanced by the recent discovery at the adjacent Pavo field,” the company added.

Feb 13 (LNGJ) - The UK port of Milford Haven is scheduled to receive three more US LNG shipments this week. The vessel “Maran Gas Agamemnon” with 174,000 cubic metres of capacity is due to discharge a US cargo on February 15 at the Dragon import facility at the Welsh port. The cargo was lifted from the Sabine Pass plant on February 3, according to shipping data.

   A second Sabine Pass shipment carried by the 154,980 cubic metres capacity vessel “Cool Rider’ is scheduled to berth on the same day at the adjacent South Hook import terminal. A third US shipment carried by the 174,000 cubic metres capacity ship “La Seine” is scheduled to berth at the South Hook terminal on February 18 with a cargo from the Cameron plant in Louisiana.

Feb 10 (LNGJ) - Höegh LNG Holdings has signed a new loan facility agreement with a group of banks to refinance the “Höegh Esperanza” and “Hoegh Gannet” floating storage and regasification (FSRU) units employed on long-term contracts in Germany.

   Höegh’s new loan facility agreement is for a total of $685 million and for 10 years and will be used to repay existing loan facilities and for general corporate purposes “We are very pleased to secure an attractive, long-term finance for these two FSRUs with a strong group of international banks,” said Håvard Furu, the Chief Financial Officer of Höegh LNG.

Feb 9 (LNGJ) – The LNG carrier, “Rioja Knutsen”, with 176,300 cubic metres of capacity, will deliver the European Union’s next cargo with the vessel scheduled to berth later on February 9 at the Dutch Gate import terminal in Rotterdam, according to shipping data. The cargo was lifted on January 27 from the Corpus Christi export plant in Texas.

   That’s as the European Union Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, which will issue daily EU LNG price assessments from the end of March, published its latest February LNG cargo test assessment. The EU agency put the delivered-ex-ship (DES) spot cargo price for Northwest Europe at €53.85 per megawatt hour (MWh), the equivalent to about $16.930 per million British thermal units.

Feb 8 (LNGJ) - Mexico Pacific LNG, the company planning a three-Train export project at Puerto Libertad in the northwest Mexican state of Sonora, said it signed long-term Sales and Purchase Agreements with ExxonMobil LNG Asia Pacific for the sale of a combined 2 million tonnes per annum of cargoes.

   Under the SPAs, the ExxonMobil affiliate will purchase cargoes on a free-on-board (FOB) basis from the first two Trains of Mexico Pacific’s Saguaro Energia LNG project in Sonora over a 20-year term. ExxonMobil also has an option for 1 MTPA from Train 3,” said Mexico Pacific.

Feb 7 (LNGJ) - Royal Vopak, the energy and LNG storage and terminals company, has acquired the shares of Gunvor Petroleum Antwerp from commodities trading group   Gunvor, giving it access to the Gunvor concession in the Belgian port of Antwerp to develop an energy hub. “Vopak is committed to sustainably redeveloping the site. together with the Port of Antwerp-Bruges,” said Vopak.

   The site is some 105 hectares in size and offers deep-sea, river, road and rail access, as well as pipeline connections to Northwest Europe. “Vopak will reconfigure the concession with the primary aim of making a positive contribution to the decarbonisation of the industrial cluster on the Antwerp port platform,” added the Dutch company. “The Port of Antwerp-Bruges and Vopak will continue their discussions to structure their common strategic ambition, which is to jointly develop a new green energy hub,” said Vopak.

Feb 7 (LNGJ) - Russian natural gas and energy company Novatek, the operator of the Yamal LNG export plant and developer of the Arctic LNG II project, has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to supply LNG to Indian company Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corp. Novatek said the accord with Deepak was signed at the Indian Energy Week conference and exhibition taking place in Bangalore.

   “The MoU envisages spot and long-term LNG deliveries to Deepak Fertilisers, including from the Arctic LNG 2 project,” said Novatek. “Mutually beneficial energy cooperation between our countries is actively developing,” added the Russian company. “The high-quality low-cost resource base as well as advanced process and logistical solutions will allow Novatek to supply competitive LNG with minimal carbon footprint,” stated Novatek.

Feb 6 (LNGJ) - Two LNG deliveries are scheduled this week for the UK South Hook LNG import terminal at Milford Haven in Wales. Both deliveries are from the Sabine Pass export facility in Louisiana operated by Cheniere Energy.

   The first cargo will be discharged on February 8 from the 170,800 cubic meters capacity vessel “Global Sea Spirit”, which departed Sabine Pass on January 25, according to shipping data. The second delivery will be on February 10 from the carrier “GasLog Hong Kong” with capacity of 174,000 cubic metres.

Feb 3 (LNGJ )- Wood Mackenzie, the UK-based energy and commodities consultancy, has been acquired by Veritas Capital, a US fund management company, for $3.1 billion in cash from Verisk, the Nasdaq-listed analytics and data company. Verisk had acquired Wood Mackenzie for $2.8Bln in 2015.

   Wood Mackenzie is a leading global consultancy providing data, analytics, and insights in to the energy sector, including LNG. “This transaction best positions Verisk to expand its role as a strategic data, analytics, and technology partner to the global insurance industry,” said Lee Shavel, Verisk Chief Executive. The UK firm under Veritas ownership will be led by Mark Brinin, who has been promoted from Co-President to Chief Executive. The other Co-President Joe Levesque has been appointed as President and Chief Operating Officer.

Feb 2 (LNGJ) - Stolt-Nielsen Limited, the London-based terminals and shipping company listed on the Oslo bourse and a stakeholder in the Avenir LNG joint venture for small-scale carriers and other assets, reported increased net profits of $95.3 million versus $35.02 in the 2021 quarter and with higher quarterly revenues of $732.5M. Net profits for the full year amounted to $280.8M compared with $78.8M in 2021.

   “The fourth quarter capped a stellar year, where all businesses performed well,” said Niels G. Stolt-Nielsen, Chief Executive. “The improvements seen in our markets were key, as well as our steadfast focus during recent years on implementing and delivering on our strategies for each of the businesses. Stolt Tankers’ net profit improved for the fourth consecutive quarter as chemical tanker spot rates and volumes continued to improve,” he added.

Feb 1 (LNGJ) - Tokyo Gas, the utility and LNG importer, reported a more than 72 percent increase in nine-month revenues from natural gas sales totalling 1.55 trillion yen ($11.9Bln) compared with 907.84 billion yen ($6.9Bln) in the same period of the previous year.

   The utility said nine-month operating profit rose more than four-fold to 235.7Bln yen ($1.8Bln) versus 52.3Bln yen ($409M) in the prior-year period. Natural gas accounts for 60 percent of the business with other income coming from electricity sales as well as other energy and overseas activities.

Jan 31 (LNGJ) - The UK will receive its first February LNG cargo delivered by the “Minerva Amorgos”, a vessel with 174,000 cubic metres of capacity. The ship lifted the cargo on January 16 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana, operated by Cheniere Energy, according to shipping data. The “Minerva Amorgos” is scheduled to berth on February 2 at the South Hook import terminal at the port of Milford Haven.

Jan 30 (LNGJ) - Leading LNG exporter QatarEnergy has completed its purchase of a 30 percent interest in exploration Blocks 4 and 9 offshore Lebanon. QatarEnergy bought its stake from the two other shareholders in the blocks, France’s TotalEnergies and Italy’s Eni. The deal was endorsed in Beirut during a ceremony attended by all the parties including Walid Fayad, the Minister of Energy and Water of Lebanon and Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs and President and Chief Executive of QatarEnergy.

   “We are very pleased to welcome QatarEnergy to our exploration acreage in Lebanon,” said Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies. “The recent delineation of Lebanon’s maritime border with Israel has created new momentum for the exploration of its hydrocarbon potential. Along with our partners, we are committed to drilling as soon as possible in 2023 of an exploration well in Block 9,” added Pouyanné.

Jan 27 (LNGJ) - Enagás, the Spanish gas grid and LNG terminals operator, has increased its stake to 20 percent in the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) bringing natural gas from Azerbaijan to Europe. Enagás has agreed with the Swiss energy company Axpo to purchase 4 percent of its TAP shareholding for €168 million euros ($183M) in addition to the 16 percent that the Spanish company already owns.

   The new shareholding line-up in the TAP after this deal gives Enagás, 20 percent, the same as BP of the UK, the Azeri energy firm SOCAR, the Italian grid and LNG operator SNAM and the Belgian LNG and gas grid company Fluxys. The owner of the Zeebrugge terminal reached this percentage after buying 1 percent of the remaining stake held by Axpo.

Jan 26 (LNGJ) - Hokkaido Electric Power Co., the Japanese utility that receives cargoes from the US including Freeport LNG in Texas before the June closure, said nine-month power sales increased by more than 41 percent to 623.8 billion Japanese yen ($4.8Bln).

   However, the company said it posted a net loss in the fiscal year to December and planned to increase electricity prices by at least 32 percent from June. The utility, which imports LNG volumes at the Ishikari import terminal, swung to a nine-month loss of 21Bln yen ($161.1 million) as fuel prices for power generation rose.

Jan 25 (LNGJ) - Matador Resources of the US has signed a deal to acquire Advance Energy Partners Holdings and natural gas and oil-producing properties and undeveloped acreage in Texas and New Mexico as assets in the LNG-producing region of the US Gulf Coast increase in value.

   Matador, based in Dallas, said the transaction consisted of an initial cash payment of $1.6 billion plus additional cash considerations of $7.5 million for each month during 2023 in which the average oil price as defined in the securities purchase agreement exceeds $85 per barrel. Advance is a portfolio company of EnCap Investments L.P. The acquisition comes after HighPeak Energy, based in Fort Worth, Texas, said a potential sale of the company and its Permian Basin assets was under consideration.

Jan 24 (LNGJ) – Russia’s Gazprom said it was meeting Greek company Prometheus Gas S.A. on January 27 to consider unwinding the 50-50 joint venture set up in 1991 between Gazprom Export and Greece’s Copelouzos Group.

   Gazprom said that natural gas deliveries to Prometheus Gas under a contract with Gazprom Export began in October 2016. Then in 2017 the companies signed a long-term contract for the supply of up to 1 billion cubic metres of gas annually to Greece from January 2018 to December 2027. “The three main importers of Russian natural gas in Greece are the state gas company Public Gas Corporation of Greece (DEPA), Mytilineos and Prometheus Gas,” added Gazprom.

Jan 23 (LNGJ) - Two LNG cargoes from the US and Qatar are heading this week for the UK South Hook LNG import terminal at the Port of Milford, according to shipping data. The first cargo is scheduled to arrive on January 27 on board the 174,000 cubic metres capacity vessel “Global Sealine” after being lifted on January 13 from the Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana.

   The second shipment is due to arrive on January 28 on the Q-Max vessel “Mozah” with 261,990 cubic metres of capacity. The shipment was loaded on January 11 at the Ras Laffan plant in the Arabian Gulf. In another delivery from Sabine Pass, the Isle of Grain LNG terminal on the Medway River southeast of London was expecting the berthing on January 23 of the 174,100 cubic metres capacity “Kool Orca”.

Jan 20 (LNGJ) - Italy’s Societa Nazionale Metanodotti (National Pipeline Company), also known as SNAM, plans to invest €10 billion ($10.8Bln) in natural gas pipelines and LNG facilities in its revised budget through to 2026. SNAM said €6.3Bln would go on pipelines, including upgrading the Adriatic Line. A further €1.4Bln would be spent on two LNG floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) and €1.3Bln would go on expanding and upgrading gas storage sites.

   “Within a backdrop of extreme uncertainty and volatility, Snam has succeeded in guaranteeing maximum support to cope with the emergency, creating the basis for the necessary actions to tackle the near future,” said Stefano Venier, Chief Executive. “We will significantly increase investments compared to the past to strengthen our infrastructure and contribute to the country's greater energy security for the next few years and beyond,” added Venier.