HOUSTON, TX -- 11/02/09 --
Research by Houston-based consultancy and
research firm, Zeus Development Corp, finds that LNG markets are
brightening worldwide as demand in China, India and Latin America keeps
prices higher than expected.
"The good news is that we never saw the 'market of last resort' scenario
many expected, where cargos would be dumped into U.S. Gulf Coast terminals
at any price," said Bob Nimocks, chief executive of Zeus Development Corp.
"Certainly, imports into the USGC were higher this year than last, but
demand in Asia, India, and Europe never fully evaporated."
In China, cargos from around the world (e.g., Tangguh, Indonesia; Balhaf,
Yemen; and Ras Laffan, Qatar) have been arriving into its three operating
terminals at Fujian, Guangdong, and Shanghai.
Long-term contracts for more LNG are being signed. For example, China
Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) announced intentions to sign a
long-term sale and purchase agreement with ExxonMobil to buy Papua New
Guinean LNG. On October 22, CNOOC said that it had started construction of
a fourth China import terminal at Ningbo, Zhejiang. Many more are planned
to give China better negotiating leverage for Russian pipeline gas.
In India, spot prices for LNG cargos have been climbing to around $6/MMBTU
as winter in the Northern Hemisphere approaches. On October 29, GAIL
announced that it would buy a cargo from Repsol for late November delivery
at an ex-ship price between $6.50/MMBTU and $6.60/MMBTU.
LNG fleets are also enjoying higher charter rates with demand across four
continental markets: Asia, Europe, North America and South America.
Charter rates for standard-sized ships have risen from some $25,000 per day
to more than $40,000 per day.
Rising prices are also spurring new LNG project proposals. Zeus is
tracking the advancement of plants in Australia, Papua New Guinea, Russia,
Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Angola, Trinidad,
Venezuela, Brazil and Alaska.
New import terminals and expansions are advancing in Brazil, Uruguay,
Colombia, Jamaica, Chile, South Africa, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Israel,
Dubai, Pakistan, India, Vietnam, Indonesia, Singapore and, of course,
China.
For more information and continuing updates on these projects and markets,
visit Zeus Virtual Energy Library(TM) (www.zeuslibrary.com/LNG).
Contact:
Amy Nussmeier
713-333-5780
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