Page 11 - FSUOGM Week 36

FSUOGM NRG FSUOGM

To say that the controversial pipeline project has Chevron is due to take Trains 1 and 3 offline
suffered more than its fair share of challenges to inspect the heat exchangers for similar issues,
over the years is an understatement. However, and now says it hopes that the work at Train 2
NewsBase does not expect Germany to shift its can help those inspections – and any necessary
position on Nord Stream 2 when the pipeline repairs – to be more efficient.
is so near completion, especially given the very Separately, Royal Dutch Shell said on Sep-
clear benefits it will provide for the German tember 4 that it had begun restart procedures at
economy. its Prelude FLNG facility and the gas fields off-
In other news, Russia has, as expected, shore Broome that supply feedstock to the vessel.
restored nearly 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) However, Shell is reported to have run into
of oil supply last month, after OPEC+ cuts were challenges almost immediately. A source on
eased. It did so as 13 OPEC members brought board the vessel was quoted by news agencies as
back a further 1mn bpd. saying the restart had some issues with “multi-
The rise in deliveries has occurred at a time ple trips” of the plant and two swivels inside the
when the recovery in global oil demand is turret that moors the giant LNG facility in place.
stalling. The summer driving season is ending, And Shell is reported to have suspended gas
while the economic fallout from the pandemic flows to Prelude as a precaution.
continues and some countries are re-imposing There is now speculation that Prelude –
lockdowns. Meanwhile, global stocks of crude which is thought to be one of the most complex
oil and refined products remain at a record high. LNG facilities in the world – may not be back on
While efforts by the OPEC+ group have stream until 2021. The facility has been offline
driven the market’s recovery so far, the easing since February as a result of technical issues.
of cuts now is bad news for other suppliers –
including Russia. If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping
the global LNG sector then please click here for
If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping NewsBase’s GLNG Monitor .
the former Soviet Union’s oil and gas sector then please
click here for NewsBase’s FSU Monitor . Latin America: Policy initiatives
Mexico, Colombia and Brazil are all wrestling
GLNG: Restart troubles in Australia with new policy initiatives this week.
Attempts to restart liquefaction capacity that has In Brazil, the Chamber of Deputies, the lower
been offline in Australia – namely, the second house of the National Congress, has approved
production train at Gorgon LNG and the Prel- the basic text of a bill that calls for opening up
ude floating LNG (FLNG) facility – are running the domestic natural gas market to even more
into obstacles. private competition.
On September 3, Chevron Australia said it The legislation is designed to support pre-
would require extra time to complete repairs of vious efforts to break state-owned Petrobras’
propane heat exchangers on Train 2 at the Gor- monopoly on the production, processing and
gon terminal on Barrow Island, off the northwest transport of gas.
coast of Western Australia. Chevron had initially In Colombia, legislation that aims to provide
anticipated completing the repairs and returning tax breaks for unconventional oil and gas pro-
Train 2 to service in September, but now says it jects has stalled in the legislature, raising new
expects the restart in October. questions about plans for pilot projects involving
The company said that following its ongo- the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking).
ing technical work, it was further refining its These projects have generated no small amount
approach and had decided that some welds in of controversy in Colombia, with opponents
targeted areas would require additional work. A playing up the environmental risks of frack-
trade union had previously raised concerns that ing and backers emphasising the potential for
the heat exchangers would need to be replaced increasing the country’s reserves.
altogether, so while the repairs are more exten- In Mexico, the government is preparing to
sive than Chevron initially expected, it appears unveil a new programme for supporting the
that this was not the worst-case scenario. energy industry within the next few weeks.

Week 36 09•September•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P11