Petronas Inks LNG Deal with Chinese Firm

Malaysian state-run Petronas through its subsidiary, Petronas LNG, has signed an agreement to supply LNG to China’s Tiger Clean Energy’s (TCEL) LNG ISO tank filling facility located at Bintulu, Sarawak, the company said on May 20.

As part of the agreement, which was signed via video conference, delivery of the LNG to China will be undertaken by TCEL, which will then distribute it to remote locations using ISO tanks. Petronas did not provide volume or price details.

“The unconventional term deal with TCEL is a customer-centric solution by Petronas as it goes beyond traditional LNG arrangements and includes a modern approach to delivering LNG that enables greater access to cleaner energy,” Petronas vice president of LNG marketing and trading, Ahmad Adly Alias said.  

Petronas said the delivery of LNG via ISO tanks can also act as an agile back-up solution to meet excess demand with pace as compared to large vessel deliveries which may be restricted by rigid delivery schedules.  

“Through this modern approach in delivering LNG, we established a virtual pipeline that effectively enables LNG to reach off-grid customers who are not directly served by the natural gas distribution system in China,” Alias said.

While the seaborne transportation destroys the economies of scale associated with large LNG tankers, the final delivered price might be acceptable to the customer far inland in China who has no access to a high-pressure pipeline.