LNG
NEWS
JULY
2016
LNG
INDUSTRY
5
Poland
PGNiG takes delivery of first LNG and announces plans to set up a London trading office
P
olish Oil & Gas Company (PGNiG SA) has announced
that the first shipment of LNG has recently been
delivered to the President Lech Kaczyński LNG Terminal in
Świnoujście.
The
Al-Nuaman
LNG carrier delivered 206 000 m
3
of
LNG from Qatar. Under a long-term contract with Qatargas,
approximately 1.3 billion m
3
/yr of gas (after regasification)
will be supplied from Qatar.
On 25 June 2016, the first LNG shipment bought
on the spot market was delivered to the LNG terminal.
Approximately 140 000 m
3
of LNG was supplied from the
Norwegian port of Melkøya by the
Arctic Princess
vessel.
The delivery from Statoil is the effect of proceedings
carried out by the PGNiG Group in May 2016. The Group
plans to purchase LNG on a spot basis in addition to
regular deliveries under its long-term contract with
Qatargas.
PGNiG has also announced plans to set up an LNG
trading office in London, UK. The office, which will open in
January 2017, is set to reach its full operational capacity by
the end of 1Q17.
Maciej Woźniak, Vice President for Trade, said: “We will
be buying LNG at competitive prices for our own needs,
but will also start trading it on global markets. That is why
we are opening an office in London, the gas trading hub for
Europe.”
Panama
Expanded Panama Canal officially opens
T
he newly expanded Panama Canal has now officially opened.
The Expansion Program is the largest enhancement project
since the Canal’s opening in 1914. It is expected to provide greater
economies of scale to global commerce and will introduce new
routes, liner services and industries, including LNG.
The expansion included the construction of a new set of
locks on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the waterway and the
excavation of more than 150million m
3
of material, creating a
second lane of traffic and doubling the cargo capacity of the
waterway. The expanded locks are 70 ft wider and 18 ft deeper
than those in the original Canal.
Panama Canal Administrator and CEO, Jorge L. Quijano, said:
“More than 100 years ago, the Panama Canal connected two
oceans. Today, we connect the present and the future [...] It is an
honour to announce that [...] we did it together: providing this
great connection to the world. This is the beginning of a new era.”
The neo-panamax
COSCO Shipping Panama
vessel was the
first to use the passage. It is currently en route to Asia.
Quijano added: “We are thrilled that we currently have
170 reservations for neo-panamax ships, commitments of two
new liner services to the Expanded Canal, and a reservation for
the first LNG vessel, which will transit in late July.”
Australia
APLNG commences exports to Kansai Electric
A
ustralia Pacific LNG (APLNG) has announced that
its first LNG shipment to Kansai Electric Power Co.
(Kansai Electric) departed Curtis Island, Australia, on
29 June 2016.
The
LNG Fukurokuju
, which was recently built to fulfil
Kansai Electric’s contract with APLNG, is bound for Japan.
Under the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA), which was
signed in 2012, Kansai Electric will receive approximately
1 million tpy of LNG for 20 years.
APLNG CEO, Page Maxson, said: “The departure of
Kansai Electric’s first cargo under the SPA represents
another significant milestone in Australia Pacific LNG’s
history and highlights the strong partnership between our
two companies. It also demonstrates the important role our
business plays in delivering a cleaner form of energy to the
global market.
“This shipment to Kansai Electric marks the 27
th
shipment
by Australia Pacific LNG since exports began. We have been
pleased with our operations from Train 1 and we expect to
deliver the first cargo from Train 2 by the end of 2016.”
Australia Pacific LNG is a joint venture between Origin
(37.5%), ConocoPhillips (37.5%) and Sinopec (25%).