Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
Magnolia LNG
The next U.S. Gulf Coast Project
THE RIGHT WAY
SMALL, MEDIUM OR LARGE. WE DELIVER. Module Design # 001-A6 2017
KBR, in Joint Venture with SKE&C USA, Inc. (SKEC), is providing engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning, start-up & performance testing for 4 x 2 Mt/a
(or greater) liquefaction trains, 2 x 160,000 m3 cryogenic tanks and a berth jetty for LNG export vessels with capacity of up to 217,000m3 (Qex Vessel).
ISSN 1747-1826
19 Back to basics
David Blanchard, Cryostar, France, explains how current market
conditions present an opportunity for small scale LNG.
ON THIS MONTHS C
COVER
23 Bigger is not always
ways better
Warren R. Miller and Fei Chen, Air Products
roducts and Chemicals Inc., USA,
explain why smaller plant capacitiess can sometimes equate to bigger
opportunities. 3D model rendition of the
planned LNG Limited 8 million tpy
26 A brighter future
re for LNG as ((or
or greater) project in La
Lake Charles,
L
Lou isiana, US. Currently s
Louisiana, shovel ready
a marine fuel having regulatory certaint
certainty (FERC
Martin Wold, DNV GL, Norway, outliness why interest in LNG
as a ship fuel is set to increase. and DOE approvals), cost ccertainty
(LSTK EPC signed with KBR KBR-led KSJV,
O&M contract with EthosEn
EthosEnergy),
industry-leading operational efficiency
with our patented OSMR liqu liquefaction
technology, and equity financing
nancin from
Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners.
Partne ASX:
LNG & OTC ADR: LNGLY.
HEAT? A
According to most specications, cryogenic
va
valves for LNG service must be re tested.
Unf
Unfortunately, the soft goods in most cryogenic ball valves will not
pass the industry standard re tests. Additionally, some metal seated
valves which claim to be inherently re safe have not actually
valve
been re tested. Are you using valves that compromise your
engineering
engin specications? Are you risking safety against the
speculative
specu claims of valve suppliers?
ValvTechnologies
ValvTec design is fire-tested to API 607. Our cryogenic valves
are ava
available in 1/4-36 ANSI 150 through 4500 and in a variety of
materials
materia suited for extremely low temperatures.
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Canada
Bear Paw receives EA approval for natural gas pipeline
NG Limited has announced that its indirect wholly owned is an important regulatory component that furthers our
L subsidiary, Bear Paw Pipeline Corp. Inc., has received
environmental assessment (EA) approval from Nova Scotia
goal to be the leader in helping Nova Scotia realise
the LNG opportunity that will benefit the province and
Environment for its natural gas pipeline. community.
Bear Paw is proposing to build and operate a Bear Paws pipeline is integral to the development of
pipeline that will stretch 62.5 km from Goldboro to the Bear Head LNG. We are putting all the elements in place
proposed Bear Head LNG export facility in Point Tupper, to develop a successful LNG export facility on Cape Breton
Richmond County, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Goldboro to Island and the pipeline is a strategic and critical element.
Point Tupper pipeline connects Bear Head LNG to the Bear Head LNGs focus is to provide access to overseas
North American natural gas pipeline network. LNG Limited markets for North Americas natural gas resources on
claims that expenditures for the construction of the pipeline competitive economics.
will only commence following the financial close of the Bear Head LNG is uniquely positioned to provide
Bear Head LNG project. liquefaction services to Western Canadian, Northeast US, and
Greg Vesey, The Managing Director and CEO of offshore Nova Scotia resource owners desiring to sell natural
LNG Limited, said: The environmental assessment approval gas to the global LNG market.
January 2017 5
LNGNEWS
Lithuania South Korea
Skangas signs LNG reload GTT technology to be
agreement with Statoil used on vessel ordered by
kangas has announced that it has signed an agreement with Gaslog
S Norways Statoil for a small scale LNG reload operation at the
Klaipeda LNG terminal in Lithuania. aztransport & Technigaz (GTT) has announced
At the time of writing, the reload was set to take place in early G that its Mark V technology will be used to equip a
new LNG carrier ordered by Gaslog. The vessel will be
January 2017, becoming the first reload carried out at the terminal,
and marking the first time that Skangas has sourced LNG from constructed at Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) shipyard
Statoil. in Geoje Island, South Korea, with delivery scheduled for
Skangas sees this latest agreement as the next step towards 2019.
increasing support for the development of the small scale market The Chairman and CEO of GTT, Philippe Berterottire,
in Northern Europe. said: Gaslogs choice of our new membrane containment
Tor Morten Osmundsen, the CEO of Skangas, said: We see this system highlights the confidence of our partners in our
latest agreement as a confirmation of the two companies common innovations.
interest to promote LNG in order to continuously develop the We are constantly striving to enhance the
small scale LNG market. performances of our systems. This first order of Mark V
Both companies have already concluded other agreements as shows our ability to meet market requirements.
part of their business relationship. These include feed gas to the Mark V technology reduces the guaranteed daily
Skangas LNG plant in Risavika, Norway, as well as a bunker supply boil-off rate of LNG to 0.07% of the tank volume
agreement to the platform supply vessels delivered from several per day. It also optimises the dynamic insulation
bases in Norway, including possible ship-to-ship (STS) transfer. resistance.
News Highlights
8 January 2017
Chart Brazed Aluminum
Heat Exchangers
www.chart-ec.com
A new era for
Australian LNG
Bernadette Cullinane, Deloitte,
Australia, reflects on a challenging
2016 for the LNG industry and
looks ahead to a record year for
LNG in Australia.
10
ith the rapid growth in global LNG trade, and the final phases of multiple
11
Global LNG supply increasing market will peak at approximately 70 million tpy in 2019
massively before returning to balance by 2023.2
Most of the new LNG supply expected in the next five years Seven years is a long time for a dynamic, rapidly
will come from Australia and the US. After several years evolving market like LNG to be in oversupply mode.
of limited growth in new liquefaction capacity driven by a Disruptive forces will abound and there may be more
lapse in final investment decisions (FIDs) for new greenfield examples of LNG buyers breaking long-term supply
projects, as well as delays faced by those projects under contracts. As LNG markets mature and become more
construction, there is a huge amount of new supply entering sophisticated, more flexibility will be built into supply
the LNG market. Approximately 135 million tpy of new LNG contracts. If the supply overhang persists, there is also
capacity is currently being built, 74% of this in two countries likely to be a curtailment of existing, uncontracted
Australia and the US. Along with the US first LNG exports capacity. Those LNG projects with high ongoing CAPEX
from trains at Sabine Pass, more than 40 million tpy of that commitments and low operating breakeven are most at
volume was set to be commissioned by the end of 2016, risk of getting shelved.
across Australia, Malaysia, and Angola.
More choices for buyers
Australian production is ramping With the US shipping its first LNG cargoes in February 2016
up and on track to potentially export 60 million tpy of LNG by
It has been a long time in the planning and construction, 2020, representing approximately 20% of global supply, Asian
but Australias LNG mega-projects are finally entering buyers have much greater supply options than in the past. As
the all-important production phase. Kicked off by the a result, the balance of power in contract negotiations has
Queensland Curtis LNG project at the start of 2015, the shifted with buyers more able to dictate terms. Australian
second half of the year saw the project reach full production LNG producers are expected to face lower prices when they
from both trains. Subsequently, there were first exports renegotiate long-term deals with Asian utilities, with new
from Santos Gladstone LNG (GLNG) project in October 2015, sources of supply, including US exports, giving buyers an
Origin Energys Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) in January 2016, advantage in contract talks. Asian buyers are also delaying
and Gorgon LNG in March 2016. signing new long-term supply contracts, mindful of the
However, other projects are limping to the finish line growing supply volumes in the global market.
as project delays remain a big supply theme. The LNG
industry has long struggled to deliver new projects on Subdued near-term outlook for
schedule. Fatigued by productivity challenges and cost LNG pricing
overruns, the last of the LNG projects under construction Operators of LNG projects without the security of locked-in
are struggling to get over the finish line. long-term (20 years) offtake should look away now. LNG
Despite these challenges, Australia is on track to have prices (using landed Japan as the benchmark) are forecast to
10 operating LNG projects by 2019 2020. This massive decline over the outlook period due to the lower oil prices,
ramp up in capacity translates to over 84 million tpy in a deterioration in the global gas supply/demand balance
export capacity by 2019 2020, above Qatar and and the shift towards spot-based contracts. Greater supply
positioning Australia as the worlds number one LNG options and a more liquid, transparent spot market will give
exporter. As a result of this ramp up, Australia will gas buyers more power in contract negotiations. With finance
experience a huge exports boost. options limited, it is a tough environment for early stage LNG
projects to get off the ground.
The haves and the have nots Despite the uncertain near-term demand outlook and a
With so many major LNG export projects coming online weak gas pricing backdrop, global LNG supply keeps
simultaneously, ensuring there are sufficient feedstock increasing. Investment bank Morgan Stanley estimates
gas reserves is critically important. A rapid increase in gas global LNG supply growing at a 9% CAGR over the period
production can be expected over the next few years, to 2015 2020.3 That equates to over 140 million tpy of new
support Australias burgeoning LNG industry. liquefaction capacity scheduled to come online during the
LNG is an industry where access to low cost reserves next five years. Presenting at LNG18 in Perth, Australia, in
and the security of long-term contracted sales volumes April 2016, Wood Mackenzie talked of 30 LNG trains to be
makes all the difference. Those LNG project operators with added by 2020.4 That is an LNG train every eight weeks
access to low cost gas and/or already signed contracts will and represents a 50% increase in LNG supply in just
enjoy a competitive advantage as they can profitably five years. Much of this increased capacity will come from
navigate the current market and build growth until prices Australia and the US. Supply competition is increasing and
recover by 2020. Operators without a ready supply of low the next decade will see more low-cost supply options.
cost feedstock gas and/or without the security of
long-term gas supply contracts look vulnerable. Proposed Australian LNG projects
Several of the less advanced Australian projects under
Global market to remain proposal have been discussed for years. All of these projects
oversupplied have their own complex issues (project partners, politics,
Based on forecast LNG supply from existing projects and market, resources, etc.) and have been beset by delays,
those under construction, together with weak LNG demand controversies and challenges. It is unlikely that any new LNG
forecasts, Macquarie estimates excess supply in the global projects will be sanctioned in the current climate.
12 January 2017
Australian LNG projects at the An uncertain future for FLNG
top of the cost curve Described as a true breakthrough technology a few years ago,
The economics of new LNG projects look even less attractive the current assessment of the floating LNG (FLNG) technology
in light of Australias high cost base and labour issues. is uncertain. Questions are being asked about whether FLNG
Being an expensive place to do business is a particularly technology will live up to its hype after the decision by
big problem for capital intensive infrastructure projects in a Woodsides Browse gas venture to freeze work was followed
challenging commodity pricing cycle. According to JP Morgans by the axing of a floating design for the Abadi gas field in
cost estimates, the majority of Australian LNG projects occupy Indonesia. Other Australian FLNG ventures have been sensitive
the upper end of the cost curve.5 Project owners are guiding to cost and price issues. It remains to be seen whether FLNG
mid to single-digit returns at current oil prices. Consensus will be the way forward for new projects, or an option with
amongst industry analysts is new LNG projects need to return limitations as well as advantages.
an over 10% internal rate of return (IRR) at under US$60/boe
to have any chance of being commissioned. Looking forward to 2017
While 2016 was certainly a year filled with challenges, the
The market is slowly but surely positives will outweigh the negatives in the long run, and 2017
switching to spot trades is set to be a record year for LNG in Australia.
Goldman Sachs noted in 2016 that spot purchases in
recent years have been cheaper than cargoes bought under
long-term deals.6 Spot trades were forecast to cost 31% less
References
1. CASSIDY, N. and KOSEV, M., Australia and the Global LNG
than contract purchases in 2016. This is an alarming trend Market, Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), (2015), http://www.
for Australian LNG producers as long-term contracts roll off. rba.gov.au/publications/bulletin/2015/mar/pdf/bu-0315-4.pdf.
Certainly, the days of a few large players exerting oligopoly 2. MEYER, J., LNGs hammer blow to thermal coal, The Sydney
style pricing power are well and truly over. Morning Herald, (24 February 2016), http://www.smh.com.au/
business/energy/lngs-hammer-blow-to-thermal-coal-20160223-
The next few years promises to see the share of gn1cod.html
uncontracted LNG volumes increase further with 3. Morgan Stanley analyst note, Shipping and LNG Market
aggregators/traders playing a bigger role to clear the market. Outlook, (4 May 2016).
What is more, thanks to greatly reduced LNG pricing, margins 4. The rise of the LNG portfolio player, Wood Mackenzie,
are much thinner in the industry, reducing opportunity for (20 April 2016), https://www.woodmac.com/analysis/video-the-
rise-of-the-LNG-portfolio-player
profitable inter-basin trade (i.e. trade between Pacific and
5. JP Morgan analyst note, Global LNG, (1 October 2015).
Atlantic basins).
6. PATON, J., LNG Golden Promise Fading for Goldman on Wave
There is also likely to be an emergence of spot trading
of Oversupply, Bloomberg, (5 November 2015), https://www.
exchanges, such as the newly announced GLX LNG cargo bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-05/goldman-says-lng-
trading platform. buyers-may-break-term-contracts-for-spot-deals
THAT WAS A SAMPLE OF
JANUARY ISSUE