Liquefied Natural gas

The natural gas liquefied (shortened in GNL ) consists simply of Natural gas (compound primarily of Méthane) condensed in the liquid state (reduction of the original volume from approximately 1/600). Indeed, when this gas is cooled with a Température of approximately -161 °C to the Atmospheric pressure, it takes the shape of a liquid clear, transparent, odorless, noncorrosive and not poison. The GNL is approximately twice lighter than water.

The GNL will play an increasingly important part in the world industry of energy, because natural gas world reserves are abundant and its condensed state makes possible its transport on long distances by the sea routes, giving rise to true chains of provisioning including the producing wells, the treatment plants, the networks of Gazoduc S, the factories of Liquéfaction, the terminals of loading of the Méthanier S, the terminals of importation and storage, the factories of gasification and re-injection to the network.

General information

Production

The liquefied natural gas is produced by Cryogénie, and requires a temperature of -163 °Celsius. Cooling is carried out by several heat pumps with change of state (two or three), generally using Hydrocarbures or Ammoniac.

The liquefied natural gas is almost pure Méthane. The other components of natural gas are thus separate at the time of the operation. The Carbon dioxide must be extracted as a preliminary, it would damage the units of liquefaction while being solidified there. One generally regards it as a waste. The Hydrocarbon S heavier than methane are recovered, and sold like petrochemical raw material or fuel (Petroleum gas liquefied), the majority of the terminals of export of GNL produce also LPG. Helium is a coproduit whose commercial value can be important.

Maritime transport

Transport is ensured by ships called Méthanier S, which store the liquid in adiabatic tanks. The insulation not being perfect, of liquid methane evaporates during the crossing, it is recovered by a small compressor and is used in the propulsion of the ship, which in general consists of steam boilers mixing this gas and of the fuel. The majority of the methane tankers have a capacity of about 140.000 cubic meters of GNL (70 approximately 000 tons), which corresponds to 87 million cubic meters of gas under the conditions standards. They are very expensive ships, the dearest nonmilitary ships per ton of displacement.

The terminals of gasification receive the methane tankers and transfer their cargo in tanks to ground. Liquid methane is progressively gasified request of the natural gas network of the petitioning country. In addition to being used for the importation of gas, these terminals control also the network of gas of the receiving country.

Other applications

If the maritime trade of natural gas is the principal application of the liquefaction of this fuel, one should not neglect the use of the GNL like fuel for heavy vehicles, the surface transport (by truck or rail) and like means of short-term storage of gas.

History

The process was initially developed with the the United States in the years 1910. At the time, the main aim was the separation of the Hélium contained naturally in natural gas. A first patent on transport by barge was deposited since 1914, but was not followed of industrial application. In 1941, a first commercial factory of natural gas liquefaction opened with Cleveland. It was used for temporary storage of gas, to smooth consumption on the network.

The maritime transport of liquefied natural gas started on an experimental basis in 1959. The Methane Pioneer was a reconverted Liberty ship: available in abundance, these ships were used as a basis for many projects. It transported liquefied natural gas of Lake Charles, in Louisiana, with Canvey Island in the United Kingdom.

The first commercial terminal of export was open in Algérie to Arzew in 1964. It exported gas towards the Great Britain, then towards the France and the the United States. In 1969, the natural gas export began Kenai in Alaska towards the Japan. Since, the trade of liquefied natural gas knew an uninterrupted growth, marked by the progressive diversification of the suppliers and the customers.

Main advantages

the treatment of the GNL is not polluting (but much energy consumes).
It is not toxic at all.
Its combustion is low polluting (under good conditions of combustion, the only rejection is the Carbonic gas).
This type of energy requires only very little maintenance.

The installation of terminals of GNL often causes fears of the residents, in front of the fear of explosions due to accidents or attacks. However, it should be noted that in addition to 40 years of international business of the GNL, any disaster of the kind on the sites of reception did not take place. On the other hand, there were several explosions on production units, of which most tragic take place with Skikda in Algeria on January 19th, 2004 and made 27 dead.

Markets

The Japan was always the main market of the GNL, alone average for him to have natural gas (the domestic reserves are tiny). There exists currently more than one about fifty terminals of importation in 17 different countries. The table below gives the figures of importation by country in 2005 (figures of BP, converts). Let us note that the first terminals of Mexico and China opened during the year, the figure below thus does not reflect their capacity of current importation, which was not effective all the year.

On the whole, the trade of GNL represents (in 2005) 135 million tons, corresponding to 190 natural gas Gm. More 6 % of gas consumed in the world is thus transported in this form, and this share does not cease increasing.

This gas is not inevitably consumed in the country which imports it, especially in Europe - the networks being inter-connected, the unloaded gas with Zeebruges or Fos-sur-Mer can be flaring with Berlin.

The market is in strong expansion, with many projects of new terminals of imports, because:

of the general increase of the consumption of energy,
of the decline of the production of gas of certain areas (North America, Great Britain) which obliges to resort to the imports,
of the rise of the oil price these last years, which returns the importation of interesting GNL, there or gas can replace oil,
of relative “the cleanliness” of gas compared to the coal and to oil for the production of electricity and in industry,
of the relative security of supply brought (example of the Chile).

The three countries of North America have many projects of terminals of imports, on the two coasts. Mexico is building to me first terminal on the west coast of this continent, while Canada builds two of them on the Atlantic dimension. Moreover, three additional terminals on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico in the United States. In the long term, many other terminals are in project, this continent will become a market more important than Japan for the GNL. However, the indigenous of American gas and Canadian production declines quickly.

The China has two terminals in construction and several in project. This country intends to strongly increase the role of gas in its energy envelope. India built two terminals recently, in building site of it and several considered one. There are also new terminals envisaged in Europe, of which several with the the United Kingdom and one in Great Britain.

On a quite less scale, of another country plan to import GNL. Chile, for example, realized of the consequences of its dependence with respect to the Argentine for the gas supply, and sees in the GNL a means of diversifying its sources - its terminal of importation should open in 2009. Israel also announced a competition for the construction of a terminal.

The New Zealand is in gas shortage and considers this solution. The Jamaica could also resort to it not to burn oil, too expensive more, in its powerplants. The South Africa would see a means well there of reducing its pollution by using gas to the place of coal.

Future

The expansion of this energy source leads to an increasing demand for transport. Indeed, the maritime transport setting much in this energy resource, and of new projects are born. For example the STL ( Single Turret Loading ) is a buoy of loading and unloading on the open sea which makes it possible the Méthanier not only to transport the GNL, but also to be useful as a terminal.

Producer countries

In 2004, thirteen countries exported liquefied natural gas, and fifteen imported some, only one (the United States) is at the same time exporter and importer.

The expansion of the means of exports follows that of the means of imports. Contrary to the oil, where the market is very diversified, in the case of the GNL nobody builds of terminal of liquefaction without to have signed long-term agreements with customers essentially of the production, and conversely.

The producers of Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, leading vendors of Japan) exploit already the majority of their gas layers, their ratio reserves/production is about 30 to 40. It thus does not seem that they can strongly increase their exports of GNL, the more so as their domestic consumption increases. The Australia, on the other hand, should increase its production. This country has an important terminal of export builds in 1989 and wide several times, the project North West Shelf of Woodside. A second, the project Darwin , entered in service in 2006, it exploits a layer divided with the Eastern Timor. At least three other projects GNL are under development in Australia: Browse , Pluto and Gorgon .

In the Middle East, Qatar has the largest gas layer of the world, the North Dome, still little exploited (to the current rate/rhythm of extraction, it would be due more than 500 years). The production increases quickly, in 2006 it reached 26 million tons. 50 annual million tons is announced for 2015.

To a more modest scale, Oman could extend its capacity.

In Africa, the Nigeria envisages to increase its production within the framework of its objective to develop all gas associated with the oil reservoirs, therefore a big part is currently burned in Torchère. In 2006, the Egypt comes to open two terminals. In May 2007, the Guinea Equatoriale exported its first loading the GNL. The capacity of the terminal of the countries is of 3.4 Mt/an, quantifies which could be doubled later, the second train using partly gas native of Niger and Cameronian (it is besides about the first transborder project).

New suppliers

In addition to the expansion of the existing capacities, the number of supplying countries should increase in the future years. Russia is undoubtedly most important of the new suppliers.

The project of exploitation of hydrocarbons of Sakhaline, which knew many vicissitudes, should export GNL as from 2008 at the rate of 10 million tons per annum (Mt/an). This first terminal will exploit only one fraction of the reserves of the island.

The Gisement of Chtokman was initially to supply an immense terminal GNL intended for export, but the project was reorganized and the essence of gas will leave in the European network. Nevertheless, a terminal GNL will be built, but much smaller, and later that in the first version of the project.

Russia has also a project of terminal on the Baltic, and one on the peninsula of Iamalie.

Several countries will join soon the rows of the exporters of GNL:

Angola: the project Angola LNG will use primarily gas associated with the oil reservoirs, eliminating their destruction in flare. It will export 5 initially Mt/an, capacity whose extension is already considered.
Norway: the most septentrional project GNL of the world is in construction in Mer of Barents. It must export gas of the layer Snøhvit at the end of 2007, for 4 Mt/an.
Yemen: the project Yemen LNG , which uses gas associated with oil reservoirs of the center of the country, must deliver 6.7 Mt/an at the end of 2008.
Peru: the project Camisea , already exploited for the liquids and gas with internal consumption, must supply a small terminal of liquefaction (4.2 Mt/an) as from 2009.

Three countries have the potential to become important exporters, but present political obstacles:

Iran: several projects of terminals of exports are studied, but the current political crisis makes in the short and medium term their realization improbable.
Venezuela: the project Marischal Sucre is proposed since decades but launched forever. The current government privileges the use of gas reserves of the country for export within the Latin-American continent.
Bolivia: the gas export via Peru or Chile was considered. The nationalization of the oil industry of the country, its will to limit the production, and the growth of the local markets makes the project less viable.

Finally projects were evoked in several countries.

Mauritania: the export of GNL starting from this country is a possibility for some of the companies which work there, but gas reserves would have initially to be found additional.
Colombia: the national company has several times shown its ambition in the field, but here also the known reserves are insufficient.
New Guinea-News-Guinea: after the abandonment (at the beginning of 2007) of a project of gas pipeline towards Australia, several means of marketing gas reserves of the country are studied, of which a terminal GNL.

Later on, many companies consider the construction of floating terminals, following the example what already exists for oil. These floating factories of liquefaction would allow the offshore oil rig marketing of isolated gas reserves. Nevertheless, one cannot say yet which will be the first layer to receive a floating terminal LNG. This solution had in particular been considered for Kudu (Namibia) and Bayu-Undan (Timor-Eastern/Australia) but finally isolated with the profit of more traditional methods.

References

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