According to EnergyQuest’s latest Monthly LNG Report, there have now been three cargoes of Queensland gas into Mexico, including the one from Santos.
The shipment was delivered to the Manzanillo LNG facility, on Mexico’s mid-west coast, a project that is a joint venture between Mitsui, Samsung and GLNG partner Korea Gas Corporation.
The consignment means that all three new Queensland LNG projects have now shipped one cargo each to Mexico.
“Asian buyers like Kogas are increasingly looking to new gas markets and as Mexico imports gas from the US, it is interesting to see Queensland gas being imported into Mexico,” EnergyQuest CEO Dr Graeme Bethune.
“From a broader market perspective, rather than new US LNG supply heading west to Asia, which is a major market concern for Australian and Southeast Asian LNG players, this cargo was yet further demonstration of the Australian LNG sector being able to ship east to America.
“To date, there has only been one cargo going the other way, a Shell cargo from Sabine Pass on the US Gulf Coast delivered to China in August via the Panama Canal.”
He said it appeared that exports into Asia from the US, using the canal, would not cover costs, while with the benefit of natural gas liquids and cheaper historic costs, west coast
Australian projects could both cover marginal costs and full costs of exports to Japan.
The report shows that the value of Australian export values exceeded a record set 22 months earlier in January 2015, at $1.75 billion.
In past the rise is due to the LNG spot price in Asia rallying to its highest level for the year of $US7 per million British Thermal Units.
Dr Bethune said today that the latest robust LNG outcomes were underpinned by many Australian LNG projects now performing above nameplate capacity.
Australian LNG export volumes grew by 6.6% or 65 cargoes in October to 4.3 million tonnes up from 4MMt (61 cargoes) in September.
Combined with higher oil prices, Dr Bethune said EnergyQuest estimated that the value of LNG exports in October was at least $1.75 billion.
“There was a particularly strong performance by LNG projects on the west coast,” Dr Bethune said.
“Western Australian projects in October shipped 2.4MMt, up from 2.2MMt in September.”
That was an increase of three cargoes to 36 cargoes.
“Woodside’s Pluto project shipped seven cargoes in October, up from five cargoes in September,” Dr Bethune said.
“Gorgon, operated by Chevron, continues to ramp up and shipped one additional cargo.”
Gorgon Train 1 is produced near nameplate at 5MMtpa, however recent reports indicate that in early November the plant was again shut down.
With Train 2 ramping up it expects to move from six cargoes in October to as much as 2-3 cargoes per week.
The Gorgon domestic gas plant also remains offline, despite indications it would be back up and running by November 1.
The ConocoPhillips-operated Darwin LNG project, the only project in the Top End until Ichthys comes online, shipped five cargoes, or 300,000 tonnes, up from 200,000t in the previous month.
On Queensland’s east coast, the Gladstone LNG projects shipped 1.5MMt (24 cargoes), down slightly from 1.6MMt (25 cargoes) in September.
Dr Bethune said the increased October cargoes went to long-term buyers in China, Japan and Korea.
The report also revealed that GLNG only drilled six development wells in October, well below the target of 17 wells per month.
