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Maintenance on Train 3 had already been Term offtakers at Gorgon include Japan’s
scheduled for later in 2021, but has now been JERA, Eneos – formerly JX Nippon Oil &
brought forward as a result of the issues Chevron Energy – Tokyo Gas, Kyushu Electric and Osaka
is having at Train 2. Gas, China’s PetroChina, India’s Petronet, South
Korea’s SK and GS Caltex and UK-listed BP.
What next Chevron owns a 47.3% operating interest in
Chevron has noted that it continues to meet its Gorgon, while ExxonMobil and Shell each have
contractual requirements to deliver gas to both 25% stakes. The remaining interest is shared by
domestic and overseas customers despite the loss minority partners Osaka Gas with 1.25%, Tokyo
of output resulting from ongoing maintenance at Gas with 1% and JERA with 0.417%.
Train 2. Based on each train’s nameplate capacity The issues with Train 2 – and potentially
of 5.2mn tpy and a cargo size of 60,000 tonnes, the other trains – at Gorgon are the latest
the outage at Train 2 since July 11 – the day it challenge for the facility, which had a long
was originally supposed to return to service after and troubled construction period and slow
scheduled maintenance – has resulted in 12-13 start-up. However, it had been running
lost cargoes. Now, the super-major is preparing more smoothly until the weld issues at Train
for further lost output during the inspections at 2 were discovered.
Trains 1 and 3. The fact that the repairs can seemingly be
According to two Singapore-based carried out without replacing the kettles is a
LNG traders cited by Reuters, Chevron welcome development for Chevron. And the
has informed Gorgon customers that it super-major’s plan to stagger the train closures
can supply them from the Wheatstone appears to suggest at least reasonable confi-
and North West Shelf LNG plants instead dence that if there are indeed similar issues at
while work on the trains is being carried Trains 1 and 3, the scale of repairs required
out. And Argus Media cited members of will be similar to what are currently underway
the industry as suggesting that Chevron at Train 2.
and Gorgon partners ExxonMobil and Asian LNG spot prices had been rising on
Royal Dutch Shell may have collectively speculation that the entire Gorgon plant would
bought 20 spot cargoes as replacement for need to be shut down, but analysts said this week
lost output at the plant. that news of the staggered closure would prevent
Argus further reported that industry par- them from increasing further. And indeed, the
ticipants had said Chevron bought a cargo Japan Korea Marker (JKM) dipped in recent
loading from Wheatstone over October 6-10 days after climbing to a recent peak of $4.23 per
from Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration million British thermal units ($117.00 per 1,000
Co. (KUFPEC) through a tender that closed on cubic metres) on August 18.
August 19. This is in line with comments made “The Gorgon problems are less severe than
the same week by Reuters’ sources, which sug- the market was expecting,” Australian consul-
gested Chevron was in the market for LNG car- tancy Energy Quest’s director, Graeme Bethune,
goes during October-December. was quoted by Montel as saying. He added that
Chevron does not comment on customer increased supplies from the US were likely to off-
contracts, so none of these reports can be set the losses related to the closures of Gorgon’s
confirmed. remaining trains.™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 35 03•September•2020