Petrobras leases Bahia LNG regasification terminal
Brazilian energy company Petrobras said September 28 that it signed a lease agreement for the LNG regasification terminal at the port of Bahia for $18.8mn.
Petróleo Brasileiro, as the company is formally known, signed the deal with the Brazilian subsidiary of Excelerate Energy, effective December 23.
Pre-qualified companies were invited in April to bid for leases of the facility’s island pier that can accommodate berthing of a floating storage regasification unit (FSRU). Among the other pre-qualified companies were Repsol LNG, BP Energy do Brasil, Compass gas e Energia, Total Gas & Eletricidade do Brasil, Eneva, Shell, Excelerate Energy and BG do Brasil.
The Bahia terminal can import up to 700mn ft3/day of gas and is connected to two onshore delivery points via a 45-km pipeline.
The US-based Excelerate Energy was initially disqualified from the tender process in June for not following the rules. Before that, Petrobras had difficulty in attracting bidders to the terminal.
The lease agreement, Petrobras said, is symbolic of the Brazilian effort to open up its energy space to private investors.
In a separate statement, Petrobras said ratings agency Moody’s raised its credit profile from Ba2 to Ba1, with a stable outlook. That suggests the company’s rating is better than that of the Brazilian government.