Page 6 - GLNG Week 15 2022

GLNG AMERICAS GLNG

Excelerate launches $384mn IPO

INVESTMENT LNG player Excelerate Energy launched the US’ The listing comes at a crucial time for LNG, as
largest initial public offering (IPO) since January Germany and other European countries look for
this week, with its listing priced at the top of a alternatives to Russian gas supplies. Prior to the
marketed range to raise $384mn. invasion of Ukraine, Russia had been supplying
The company, which operates floating stor- Europe with 30-40% of its gas.
age and regasification units (FSRUs), sold 16mn Excelerate reported net income of $41mn
shares for $24 per share on April 12, after market- on revenue of $889mn in 2021. That marked an
ing them for $21-24. The IPO price gives Excel- increase on $33mn of net income on revenue of
erate a market value of around $2.54bn based on $431mn in 2020, illustrating how LNG demand
the outstanding shares listed in its filings with the had been booming even prior to the war in
US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Ukraine.
The company began trading on April 13 on The Texas-based company, which was
the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under founded in 2003, owns and operates 10 FSRUs
the symbol EE. Excelerate’s shares rose 17.5% in in the US, Brazil, Argentina, Israel, the United
its market debut with investors betting that the Arab Emirates (UAE), Pakistan and Bangladesh.
company would benefit from Western sanctions It generated roughly 40% of its revenue from the
on Russia as numerous countries scramble to Americas last year. The Asia-Pacific region was
expand their regasification capacity. At one point the firm’s second largest market, followed by the
in the April 13 session, the company hit a peak Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
valuation of close to $3bn. Excelerate’s IPO marks the first LNG-related
Excelerate’s founder, George Kaiser, remains listing in the US since 2019 as the outlook for oil
the majority owner of most of the company’s and gas companies continues to strengthen.™
shares after its stock market debut.

Eagle LNG set to negotiate LNG supply deal

with Curaçao’s Aqualectra

INVESTMENT EAGLE LNG Partners (US) and Aqualectra, state in the Lesser Antilles.
Curaçao’s public water and power provider, Curaçao already has close ties to both Aruba
have signaled their intent to hammer out a deal and Bonaire, as all three islands are constituent
on LNG supplies. of the Netherlands. However, the fuel supply
The two companies issued a joint statement agreement would have added benefits, as Eagle
last week saying that they had signed a heads LNG Partners struck a $100mn deal last year
of agreement (HoA) document that represents with WEB Aruba, the national water and power
the first step toward negotiating an LNG supply provider of Aruba, on the joint construction of
agreement. They did not reveal all the details an LNG regasification terminal at the site of the
of the HoA, but they did report that the parties Refineria di Aruba (RdA) plant.
hoped to finalise negotiations on the proposed When finished, the facility at RdA will be
agreement by the middle of this year. capable of importing LNG and regasifying it so
In the statement, they noted that Hou- that it can be used to generate power at WEB
ston-based Eagle LNG had been one of five com- Aruba’s Balashi thermal power plant (TPP).
panies to a submit non-binding offer in response Eagle LNG said last year that the project would
to Aqualectra’s request for information (RFI) on help Aruba reduce carbon dioxide emissions by
a proposal for using LNG as a new source of fuel. allowing the TPP’s dual-fuel engines to switch
They also indicated that the utility had based the from the petroleum products that are its current
RFI on the assumption that using LNG to power main sources of fuel to cleaner-burning natural
its operations would reduce costs, thereby bene- gas.
fiting local consumers by bringing down the cost Eagle LNG and Aqualectra indicated in
of utility services. last week’s statement that they are hoping to
The companies did not say exactly how Aqua- reap similar environmental benefits from the
lectra might be able to make use of the LNG. Curaçao LNG supply deal. They also said that
However, they did say that the proposed deal they hoped to see LNG become a more widely
could serve as a bridge between the utility and used fuel for power generation in the region.™
its counterpart in Aruba, a neighbouring island

P6 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 15 15•April•2022