An LNG carrier chartered by China’s Sinopec has been waiting for over two weeks to load at the Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) project, which has reportedly delayed export of its first commercial cargo.
Sources told Reuters that demurrage costs have already topped $500,000 for the BW Pavilion Vanda, which is owned by Singapore-based BW Pavilion LNG. AIS data shows the tanker has been at anchor off Gladstone, Australia, since at least December 18. It has not yet been decided who will pay the demurrage costs, Reuters said.
, which is owned by Singapore-based BW Pavilion LNG. AIS data shows the tanker has been at anchor off Gladstone, Australia, since at least December 18. It has not yet been decided who will pay the demurrage costs, Reuters said.LNG production at the plant on Curtis Island commenced on December 11 and “continues to ramp up”, a spokesperson for Origin told the newswire, with the first export expected “shortly”. The inaugural cargo was initially expected before the end of 2015.
Origin and ConocoPhillips each have a 37.5% stake in the $18bn APLNG project, with Sinopec holding a 25% share.
Sinopec has built a new 3m tpa LNG import terminal in Beihai, southwest China, to receive gas from APLNG. Start-up of the Chinese terminal has been rescheduled and is now expected around March this year, instead of by the end of 2015, the newswire said.
The Chinese energy company is contracted to buy 7.6m tpa of LNG from APLNG each year from 2016 to 2036, but is reportedly in talks to sell some of the volume due to a glut in cargo supply.
