Page 10 - NorthAmOil Week 19 2021

NorthAmOil PROJECTS & COMPANIES NorthAmOil

Sempra likely to push Port

Arthur LNG FID back to 2022

TEXAS SEMPRA Energy said last week that it would stake in the facility. Aramco had also agreed
likely delay the final investment decision (FID) on a preliminary basis to buy LNG from the
on its proposed Port Arthur LNG export termi- project over a 20-year period. However, the
nal in Texas to 2022. pandemic has resulted in the Middle Eastern
If this happens, it would be the second delay company reconsidering some of its investment
after Sempra initially pushed back the FID plans.
from 2020 to 2021 as a result of market uncer- Meanwhile, Sempra continues construction
tainty caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) on its Energía Costa Azul (ECA) LNG project in
pandemic. Mexico, which was the only LNG export project
The continuing impacts of the pandemic were to reach FID in 2020. In the company’s earnings
cited again this time around, with Sempra also call, Sempra’s chairman and CEO, Jeffrey Mar-
saying that it was working with partners and cus- tin, remarked that ECA LNG Phase 1 was “going
tomers to reduce Port Arthur’s greenhouse gas very well”, with some of the site preparation work
(GHG) emissions profile and enhance its com- having started last month.
petitiveness in the context of the energy transi- Additionally, Martin talked up progress being
tion. As a result of this work and the pandemic, made towards a planned expansion of the Cam-
it is “more likely” that the FID will come next eron LNG export terminal in Louisiana. He said
year, Sempra’s executive vice-president and chief the partners in the project were working through
financial officer, Trevor Mihalik, said during the the funding of the pre-front-end engineering
company’s earnings call. and design (pre-FEED) work, with this expected
The first phase of Port Arthur LNG would to help advance and optimise the overall techni-
have a capacity of 13.5mn tonnes per year (tpy) cal design of Cameron Phase 2.
from two liquefaction trains. In a setback for Sempra is also making “great progress” on
the project, it was reported in September 2020 commercial discussions with Mitsui, Mitsubishi
that state-owned Saudi Aramco was reviewing and Total – who are also partners in Cameron –
its earlier preliminary decision to buy a 25% according to Martin.™

Shell makes Gulf discovery at Leopard

GULF OF MEXICO ROYAL Dutch Shell announced this week that “With our US Gulf of Mexico production among
its Shell Offshore subsidiary had made a “signif- the lowest GHG [greenhouse gas] intensities in
icant” oil discovery at the Leopard prospect, in the world, Shell remains confident about the
the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico. GoM and this latest discovery will help us deliver
The discovery is located roughly 245 miles on our strategy to focus on valuable, high-mar-
(394 km) south-southeast of Houston, in the Per- gin barrels as we sustain material upstream cash
dido Corridor, where Shell is already producing flows into the 2030s.”
Leopard is located in oil from the Great White, Silvertip and Tobago Shell is targeting net-zero GHG emissions
the Perdido Corridor, fields via the Perdido spar. The super-major has by 2050, but Goodfellow’s comments and the
where Shell is already made two other discoveries nearby since 2018 fact that exploration continues illustrate that the
producing oil from the with the Whale and Blacktip prospects. super-major considers certain oil and gas opera-
Great White, Silvertip Leopard, in Alaminos Canyon (AC) Block tions to fit into this strategy, at least for now. The
and Tobago fields via 691, encountered more than 600 feet (183 company says it is the largest deepwater lease-
the Perdido spar. metres) of net oil pay across multiple levels. holder in the Gulf, with access to some of the
Shell said it was continuing to evaluate the find in most prolific acreage in the region.
order to further define the development options In the May 11 announcement, Shell noted
available. that the comment about its US Gulf production
“Leopard expands our leading position in having one of the lowest GHG intensities in the
the Gulf of Mexico and is an exciting addition to world was based on a comparison with other
our core portfolio, especially given its proximity producers that are members of the International
to existing infrastructure and other discoveries Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP).
in the Perdido Corridor,” stated Shell’s deepwa- Shell operates Leopard with a 50% interest,
ter executive vice-president, Paul Goodfellow. while Chevron owns the remaining 50%.™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 19 13•May•2021