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Petrobras, Excelerate finish

negotiations on Bahia LNG lease

PROJECTS & BRAZIL’S national oil company (NOC) Petro- terminal. This will expand the capacity of the
COMPANIES bras has reportedly finished negotiations with facility, which is already capable of handling up
US-based Excelerate Energy on a proposed to 700mn cubic feet (19.8mn cubic metres) per
leasing contract for the Bahia LNG terminal and day of regasified LNG.
hopes to conclude the contract soon. Stephen Kobos, the CEO of Excelerate, said
Petrobras marked the conclusion of negotia- that the leasing contract for the Bahia LNG
tions last week by issuing a statement revealing terminal would benefit Brazil. “Petrobras’ deci-
that it had wrapped up the process of verifying sion to advance in the tender for leasing the
the commercial viability of Excelerate’s offer. Bahia regasification terminal to Excelerate is
This means that the US company’s Brazilian sub- an important milestone in the process of pro-
sidiary Excelerate Energy Comercializadora de moting competition in the Brazilian natural gas
Gás Natural has “advanced to the qualification sector,” he said. “We understand that increasing It also said that
stage” of the bidding contest, the NOC said in access to flexible LNG supply is critical to sta-
the statement. bilising Brazil’s energy system, especially during one of its first
It also explained that it is waiting for Exceler- adverse weather events such as the current severe
ate to submit all the documentation needed to drought.” moves would be
evaluate the legal, economic and financial terms The Bahia LNG terminal is capable of import-
of the proposed lease. Once the NOC receives ing and regasifying the equivalent of 20mn cubic to deploy one of
these materials, the draft contract will be sub- metres per day of LNG. Petrobras has described its own floating
mitted to the relevant divisions of Petrobras for the terminal as “an island-type pier with all the
approval, it said. necessary facilities for mooring [an FSRU] ship storage and
Excelerate confirmed that it had wrapped directly to the pier and a supply ship on the port
up negotiations with Petrobras in a separate side of the FSRU.” regasification
statement and said it hoped to begin executing According to previous reports, Excelerate’s
the lease contract in the near future. “Once the lease will cover assets associated with Bahia units.
financial and legal qualification and certifica- LNG – namely, a 45-km pipeline that runs
tion stages have been concluded and all neces- from terminal facilities in the port of Bahia
sary regulatory approvals have been obtained, to exit points in São Francisco do Conde and
Excelerate will start importing LNG and selling São Sebastião do Passé, along with the pow-
regasified natural gas to its Brazilian customer,” er-generating facilities in the Madre de Deus
it commented. Waterway Terminal (TEMADRE). However, it
It also said that one of its first moves would will not include access to the Excelerate Expe-
be to deploy one of its own floating storage rience, an FSRU that Petrobras has installed at
and regasification units (FSRUs) at the Bahia the port of Bahia.™

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