NLNG starts talking to buyers on new contracts

Nigeria LNG (NLNG) has begun talks with potential buyers on new contracts for gas supplies from its first three production units at its liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal, a senior official from the African company told Reuters.

Contracts for gas supplies from Trains 1, 2 and 3 – which together produce 9 million tonnes of LNG a year – are being discussed, said the official who requested anonymity. He was attending the Gastech trade conference in Chiba outside Tokyo.

“Trains 1-3 are coming back to the market as they are out of contract by 2022. We started to remarket today,” he told Reuters late on Wednesday at the conference. The units that freeze natural gas into liquid form for export on ships are known as trains in the industry.

Initial responses from buyers have been positive, he said.

“There are some who are guaranteed to buy,” the official said, though he provided no further details.

Nigeria LNG is a venture between state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Royal Dutch Shell , Total and Eni.

Its Bonny Island LNG plant on Nigeria’s southern coast has six trains with a total capacity of 22 million tonnes a year.