Page 13 - DMEA Week 22

DMEA TRANSPORT DMEA

Golar LNG reveals outlook for

projects in Africa, South America

GLOBAL BERMUDA-REGISTERED Golar LNG has
issued an update on its activities related to pro-
BP is leading the group jects in Africa and South America.
that will develop the In a report on its performance in the first
Grand Tortue/Ahmeyim quarter of 2020, Golar LNG said it was working
project. to hammer out an agreement on revising the
schedule and budget for the conversion of the
Gimi floating LNG (FLNG) vessel. “We are in
advanced and positive discussions with our main
building contractor, Keppel Shipyard Ltd, and
with engineering topsides subcontractor Black
and Veatch, on a revised cost and time schedule
for the FLNG Gimi conversion,” it stated.

Senegal/Mauritania “We expect Sergipe [CELSE] to take
BP and its partners had previously struck a advantage of merchant power opportunities
deal with Golar LNG’s subsidiary Gimi MS where the marginal cost of power exceeds the
Corp. on the use of the Gimi to develop Tortue/ LNG purchase price (currently below $2 per
Ahmeyim, an offshore block that straddles the mmBtu delivered ex-ship in Brazil),” Golar
border between Senegal and Mauritania. In LNG said in its statement. “We also expect
April, though, they declared force majeure on the Golar Power to continue to progressively
project, saying that the coronavirus (COVID-19) convert the small-scale letters of intent [LoIs]
pandemic had forced them to push their work they have into binding sales agreements over
schedule back by 12 months. the course of this year and continue to sign
Since then, Golar LNG has been in talks with new ones.”
the contractors it hired for the conversion. The The company further stated that it hoped
company indicated in its interim report that it to strike similar deals for the delivery of LNG
had put forward proposals for a revised time and to additional Brazilian facilities in the near
cost schedule but did not divulge any details. “If future. It explained that it was working with
implemented, this would reduce Golar’s imme- local partners in Latin America to support
diate liquidity contribution to the FLNG Gimi the development of gas-fired TPPs with a
between the second quarter of 2020 and the orig- total generating capacity of 10.6 GW. All of
inal second-quarter 2022 delivery date,” it said. these projects “have downstream monetisa-
“The consequences of any delay to the returns tion routes through a combination of power
available from the project will be dependent on generation, gas consumption (by commercial
the ultimate duration and cause of the delay and industrial users) and small-scale LNG
claimed by BP and the final terms of the revised distribution via cabotage and ISO containers
conversion building agreements,” it added. to end-users,” it said.
It also noted that one of these projects was
Brazil nearly ready to launch. “The Barcarena terminal
Golar LNG went on to say that it expected its is expected to reach a final investment decision
Brazilian projects to make progress in the near (FID) later this year or early next year, with the
future. associated 605-MW power station currently
The company’s Golar Power subsidiary is anticipating FID in mid-2021,” it said. “Over
involved in Brazil within the framework of an the next four months, we expect to make fur-
agreement to let one of its vessels, a floating stor- ther progress on reaching agreement with key
age and regasification unit (FSRU) known as the industrial customers for the supply of gas from
Golar Nanook, serve as an LNG import termi- the Barcarena-based FSRU that is expected to
nal near the port of Sergipe. The FSRU is taking commence operations in 2022.”
delivery of LNG and then regasifying it before Golar LNG also said it hoped to finalise plans
piping it onshore to Usina Termoelétrica (UTE) for securing a floating storage unit (FSU) near
Porto de Sergipe. the port of Suape later this year. Additionally,
UTE is a gas-fired thermal power plant (TPP) it reported that it was in discussions with BR
owned by Brazil’s Centrais Elétricas de Sergipe Distribuidora on plans for distributing LNG
(CELSE). It was commissioned in February of this through the Brazilian company’s network of
year and has a generating capacity of 1,516 MW. 7,600 filling stations. ™

Week 22 04•June•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P13