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Kenai LNG facility to run through August
Four additional liquefied natural gas cargoes, one to China and three to Japan, will allow the Kenai LNG plant to remain open through early August.
ConocoPhillips said April 19 that the plant owners recently agreed to terms to supply the additional cargos. The owners’ long-term contract with Tokyo Electric and Tokyo Gas expired in March.
The plant is owned 70 percent by ConocoPhillips Alaska Natural Gas Co. and 30 percent by Marathon Oil Co.
ConocoPhillips said in February that the company would cease LNG exports from plant and begin mothballing the facility as early as April.
Long-term plans unaffected The company said long-term plans to mothball the plant are unaffected by these additional LNG cargos, due to the long-term Cook Inlet gas supply situation.
ConocoPhillips said it will continue to honor its gas supply contracts with local utilities and will be working with utilities and other potential stakeholders to evaluate opportunities to supply additional natural gas to local markets and manage seasonal gas demands.
“Today’s announcement is welcome news for the plant workers, the Kenai community and for Alaska’s economy,” Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell said in an April 20 statement. “In the free market system, private companies will continue to make decisions based on supply and demand, and in this case, we received some good news. This plant has been part of the foundation of the Kenai community for 42 years and the economic impact has been significant.”
—Petroleum News
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