Regional LNG: Singapore PM inaugurates first LNG terminal
Wednesday, February 26 2014 - 12:58 AM WIB
Prime Minister (PM) Lee Hsien Loong officially opened Singapore?s first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Terminal late on Tuesday, at a ceremony held at the Terminal on Jurong Island, marking a new chapter in Singapore?s energy security and the future development of the island nation?s energy sector.
The S$1.7 billion Terminal, which commenced operations on 7 May 2013, is owned and operated by Singapore LNG Corporation Pte Ltd (SLNG).
The company said in a press statement the terminal is a critical infrastructure that allows Singapore to import natural gas from around the world, thereby ensuring the security of supply sources to meet Singapore?s current and future energy demand. In 2013, more than 90 percent of the electricity in Singapore was generated using natural gas.
To date, some 18 LNG vessels have called at the Terminal, delivering more than 56 million MMBTUs (Million British Thermal Units), or about 1.08 million metric tonnes, of LNG to Singapore. The LNG, from BG Group?s portfolio, has been supplied from a number of sources including Equatorial Guinea, and Trinidad and Tobago.
The facility, which is designed to serve multiple terminal users, has the potential to support the growth of Singapore?s LNG sector, and the development of Singapore as an LNG hub for the region. It will help to catalyse LNG-related business opportunities and create new jobs in the energy sector. These include LNG trading, bunkering and vessel cool-down services.
The Singapore LNG Terminal began operations in May 2013 with two storage tanks and an initial throughput capacity of 3.5 million tons per annum (Mtpa). The third tank and additional regasification facilities have been completed and are now operational, increasing the throughput capacity of the Terminal to 6 Mtpa. The Secondary Jetty is expected to be completed by the end of March 2014.
Plans are underway for the next phase of expansion of the Terminal, termed ?Phase 3?, which will see the addition of a fourth tank and more facilities to bring the Terminal?s throughput capacity to at least 9 Mtpa. SLNG has started the tender process to select a suitably qualified contractor and the final investment decision, including the award of the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract, is expected in the second quarter of 2014.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak