Natural Gas Daily: May 25th, 2020
QP Cuts Spending, But Pushes on with LNG Expansion
Qatar Petroleum (QP) intends to cut capital and operating expenses by 30% this year in response to the collapse in oil and gas prices, its CEO Saad al-Kaabi said in a webinar organised by the US-Qatar Business Council on May 22.
|
Advertisement: The National Gas Company of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (NGC) NGC’s HSSE strategy is reflective and supportive of the organisational vision to become a leader in the global energy business. |
The Big Picture:
- Qatar has a two-stage plan to expand its liquefaction capacity from 77mn mt/yr at present to 110mn mt/yr in 2025 and 126mn mt/yr in 2027.
- QP is moving "full steam ahead" with the expansion, al-Kaabi said, having started development drilling at the North Field East (NFE) field at the end of March. The company also reserved capacity last month at a Chinese shipyard to build a new fleet of LNG carriers (LNGCs) for the project.
China's LNG Imports in April Up 13%
China’s LNG imports in April totalled 5.1mn metric tons, up 12.9% yr/yr, customs department data published May 23 showed.
The Big Picture:
- Although imports have witnessed a recovery in the last couple of months, the growth rates are significantly lower due to the Covid-19 pandemic's impact on demand. Chinese LNG imports surged over 35% yr/yr in April 2019.
Canada’s TC Energy Completes CGL Sale
Canadian infrastructure developer TC Energy said it has completed the partial monetisation of its Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline, the 670-km conduit that will deliver 2.1bn ft3/day of natural gas to the Anglo-Dutch Shell-led LNG Canada project on British Columbia’s northern coast.
The Big Picture:
- A 65% equity interest in CGL has been sold to a partnership of KKR & Co and Alberta Investment Management Corp (AimCo).
Gazprom Recommends $5.1bn in 2019 Dividends
The board of Russia's Gazprom has recommended a dividend of rubles 15.24 ($0.21)/share from its results in 2019, the company said on May 22, in line with its management's proposal.
The Big Picture:
- Gazprom approved a new dividend policy in December, under which payments will rise to at least 40% of net profit in 2020 and at least 50% in 2021.
India's Gas Output in April Drops 19%
India’s natural gas production in April was 2.16bn m3, down 18.62% yr/yr, country’s petroleum and natural gas ministry said on May 23.
The Big Picture:
- “The shortfall in gas production is primarily due to less gas off take by consumers due to Covid-19 lockdown,” the ministry said.
TAP Begins Test Flows at Albanian Section
The operator of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) has begun pumping gas into a 4-km section of the pipeline that runs between the Greek border and a metering station in Bilisht, Albania, it said on May 22.
The Big Picture:
- TAP forms the third and final section of the Southern Gas Corridor and is due to start pumping up to 10bn m3/yr of gas from Azerbaijan to southeast Europe this autumn.
