Page 8 - GLNG Week 26

GLNG amERiCas GLNG
BP lines up Woodfibre supplies
PRojECts & ComPaniEs
BP has signed on to take LNG from the Wood- bre LNG plant, in Canada’s British Columbia. Paci c Oil & Gas announced the binding sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with BP Gas Marketing last week, describing the o aker as a foundation customer. BP will take 750,000 tonnes per year (tpy) of LNG from the Wood - bre LNG plant, in Squamish, for 15 years. Deliv- eries are due to start in 2023.
In addition, BP Canada Energy Group is working with Pacific on the provision of gas transportation and balancing services. is is intended to ensure the reliable delivery of gas to Wood bre LNG for the 15 years. Wood bre, in September 2018, signed a heads of agreement (HoA) with CNOOC Gas & Power Trading for the supply of a similar amount, also starting in 2023, for 13 years.
“We are honoured to have BP as a founda- tion customer of our Wood bre LNG project,” said Paci c’s president, Ratnesh Bedi. “BP is a global LNG portfolio player and a pioneer in the international LNG business. We look forward to providing BP with a consistent supply of exi- ble Canadian LNG that can displace more car- bon-intensive fuels.”
e COO of BP’s global LNG business, Jonty Shepard, noted the importance of securing a low-carbon future, in addition to accessing
more energy. “BP is meeting this dual challenge by securing new and innovative LNG solutions to develop our LNG portfolio. is SPA further broadens our supplier base and adds to BP’s ability to o er cleaner energy to our customers around the world.”
In related news, the BC Oil and Gas Commis- sion approved the facility permit for the liquefac- tion plant on July 2.
The Woodfibre LNG plant will produce around 2.1mn tpy of LNG from a site that used to be a pulp mill. “Wood bre LNG is a tremen- dous opportunity for [BC] and Canada to get clean natural gas to growing markets in Asia,” said Wood bre’s president, David Keane. Paci c “has made signi cant investments in Canadian natural gas because they are confident in the future of LNG in Canada.”
e Squamish Nation Council approved the Wood bre LNG plan in November 2018. Notice to proceed is targeted for this summer, the com- pany has said, with construction planned to start this year.
BP has struck a number of deals in recent years to lock in future LNG supplies. for instance, it has agreed to take the full volume from Mozambique’s Coral South oating LNG (fLNG) project and its own operated Tortue LNG, in Senegal and Mauritania.™
would represent a complimentary capability to our land and waterside assets and investments.”
e Port of Virginia is the h port to join the LNG coalition. Other members include the Vancouver fraser Port Authority, the Port of Rotterdam, the Maritime and Port Authority of (MPA) Singapore and Yokohama Kawasaki International Port Authority (YKIP). Vancouver joined in March this year.
e move towards marine bunkering comes as the industry readies for new controls on emis- sions starting on January 1, 2020. e Interna- tional Maritime Organisation (IMO) rules will restrictsulphurcontentinfueltolessthan0.5%, down from the current 3.5% limit.
Using LNG is seen as one way of conforming to these rules. e other main alternatives are installing scrubbers or the use of higher qual- ity fuels. e IMO has said ships will need to begin using low-sulphur blended fuels by Octo- ber or November of this year in order to reach the January 1 target. Some concerns have been expressed about the availability of such supplies, but the IMO appeared con dent in a statement last week.™
Virginia joins SEA\LNG
PoliCy
THE Port of Virginia has joined the SEA\LNG coalition. e group, which works to drive the use of LNG as a marine fuel, announced the additional member on July 2. e port is SEA\ LNG’s rst US participant.
“ e US has vastly increased its LNG export capacity since the industry really took ight in early 2016, inspiring development in LNG bun- kering capabilities on the East and West Coasts,” said SEA\LNG’s chairman, Peter Keller. “ e addition of the Port of Virginia to the coalition marks the climbing interest in LNG as a com- mercially viable, environmentally sustainable fuelforUSdomesticandinternationalshipping.”
e port is in the process of undergoing a $700mn expansion, intended to boost its capac- ity by 40%. In March, the Virginian facility established a working group to examine LNG bunkering for maritime trade.
e CEO of the Virginia Port Authority, John Reinhart, said the facility had “always been at the centre of maritime innovation. Our industry is evolving and the issues of alternative marine fuels and ports reducing their carbon footprints are growing in their importance. LNG bunkering
BEnEfits:
A study released by sEA\ lNG in April found the use of lNG would reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) by up to 21%, while
also reducing sulphur oxide, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter to near zero.
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 26 04•July•2019