EETL LNG terminal expansion project : EETL signs HOA with Excelerate Energy

EETL LNG terminal expansion project : US LNG company Excelerate Energy and Engro Elengy Terminal (EETL) have signed heads of agreement (HOA) for the expansion of the EETL terminal owned by the latter in Port Qasim, Pakistan.

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal is jointly owned by Pakistani conglomerate Engro Corporation and Dutch tank storage company Royal Vopak. Currently, the Pakistan LNG import terminal has a storage capacity of 150,900 cubic meters (cbm).

The EETL LNG terminal expansion project will see the facility’s send-out capability increased to over 150 million standard cubic feet per day (MMscf/d), while its LNG storage capacity will be ramped up to 173,400cbm.

According to Excelerate Energy, the $125 million EETL LNG import terminal will be expanded by replacing the existing Exquisite floating storage and regasification unit (Exquisite FSRU) with the newly built Hull 2477 FSRU.

Daniel Bustos – Chief Commercial Officer at Excelerate Energy, commenting on the EETL LNG terminal expansion project, said: “We are proud to partner with Engro and Vopak on this expansion to help meet the growing demand for natural gas in Pakistan. We continuously work with our customers to ensure our terminals adjust to the changing needs of their markets.

“In the nearly five years of essentially non-stop operations in Pakistan, we have a proven track record of safe and reliable operations at peak performance.”

The EETL LNG terminal expansion project involves the replacement of the Exquisite FSRU with the Hull 2477 FSRU. Photo courtesy of Royal Vopak.

Excelerate Energy said that the Hull 2477 FSRU is being constructed at the Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering shipyard (DSME shipyard) and is slated to be delivered in April 2020.  The expansion operations at the EETL LNG terminal are targeted to begin before this year’s winter.

The Exquisite FSRU has been delivering to 690 MMcf/d of natural gas directly into Sui Southern Gas’ natural gas pipeline system. The FSRU, currently meets 15% of the domestic daily natural gas requirements in Pakistan.

In September 2019, Excelerate Energy entered into a five-year bareboat charter deal with Maran Gas Maritime for the Hull 2477 FSRU. The US LNG company has the option to purchase the FSRU at any time during the contract’s duration.

Commenting on the EETL LNG terminal expansion project, Jahangir Piracha – EETL CEO, said: “Excelerate Energy has been an excellent partner who has made it possible for EETL to cater to such a high level of utilization of our regasification capacity. It is our trust in their operational excellence that we are now jointly undertaking the expansion of our terminal.”

The EETL LNG terminal, which is the first floating LNG import terminal in Pakistan has been operating since March 2015.