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Tokyo Gas clinches two LNG deals
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
TOKYO Gas has reached two separate deals on lique ed natural gas (LNG) supply with Sumi- tomo Joint Electric Power and Royal Dutch Shell.
e Japanese utility said on June 19 that it had signed a heads of agreement (HoA) to sell 170,000 tonnes per year (t/y) of LNG to Sum- itomo Joint Electric for ve years. e supply deal, which uses an ex-ship delivery framework, will start in nancial year 2021, which will begin on April 1. Tokyo Gas said it would source the LNG from those projects it has already agreed on supply contracts.
The deal, which is Tokyo Gas’ third LNG wholesale agreement using ex-ship terms, came hot on the heels of Shell’s announcement on June 18 that it had agreed to deliver a single cargo of carbon-neutral LNG to Tokyo Gas. e cargo will be delivered by July 2019.
The Anglo-Dutch super-major said it had reached a similar deal with GS Energy, while declining to reveal the size or price of either cargo.
Shell said nature-based carbon credits would be used to o set all of the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated during the exploration, pro- duction, delivery and consumption of the gas.
Commenting on the agreement, Tokyo Gas managing executive officer Kentaro Kimoto said: “In addition to the widespread expansion of natural gas, with its character of having the least CO2 emission among fossil fuels, we will continue our effort to realise the low carbon society as well as providing a new value to our customers by introducing carbon-neutral LNG as a new e ort.”
e carbon-neutral LNG supply agreement is the rst in its kind and comes a couple of months a er Tokyo Gas and Shell announced a er sup- ply rst. Two said in April that they had signed a 10-year supply deal that partly uses a coal-linked pricing formula. Under the terms of the deal Shell will supply the utility with 500,000 t/y from its global LNG.
AUSTRALASIA
Australian farmers challenge Origin Energy’s NT fracking plans
PROJECTS & COMPANIES
TWO companies that own and operate a cattle station in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT) have challenged natural gas developer Origin Energy’s hydraulic fracturing plans for the site.
BB Retail Capital (BBRC) and Bullwaddy Pastoral have asked the NT Supreme Court to prevent the local government from approving a test fracking operation at the Amungee Mun- gee station. e station, located around 600 km south of Darwin near Daly Waters, is also the site of Origin Energy’s rst test well in 2016. BBRC invested A$6.5 million ($4.5 million) in 2013 for the 3,200 square km station and is its majority partner.
BBRC and Bullwaddy Pastoral claim Ori- gin Energy did not properly carry out legally required stakeholder engagement and failed to give them enough time to respond to anticipated environmental risks.
Origin Energy disputes this allegation, tell- ing the ABC on June 23 that it had been talking about its work plans for almost a year. It added: “Origin previously reached agreement to access the same property, for similar activities, and had no issues either in reaching an agreement or in the execution of our work.”
e farmers’ legal move comes less than two weeks a er the NT government approved two
new unconventional exploration programmes. Origin Energy has been allowed to resume work on its Kyalla test well on the Hay eld Shenan- doah Station near Daly Waters and Santos has been given the green light to proceed with works and testing at Tanumbirini Station north of Elliott.
e approvals come a little more than a year after the government lifted a territory-wide moratorium on exploration fracking that had been implemented in 2016 in response to grow- ing protests from farmers and the agri-sector over fracking’s perceived dangers. However, a 15-month scientific inquiry commissioned by the NT government into the development practice found that the associated risks could be managed if 135 recommendations were imple- mented. At the time the government endorsed all of the recommendations and has, in recent weeks, nalised the Code of Practice that devel- opers must operate under.
e Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) welcomed the code’s nalisation, with the industry lobby’s external a airs director, Matt Doman, saying: “ e priority now is to move forward with gas exploration that will bene t the Territory and provide jobs and investment.”
Week 25 26•June•2019 w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m P11
