APLNG's Jan-Mar output higher: Origin

Market: Electricity, Natural gas
30/04/24

The 9mn t/yr Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) project in Queensland state produced and sold more LNG than the previous quarter and year earlier, Australian independent Origin Energy said in its January-March results.

Output rose from the final quarter of 2023 because of the power failure of a vessel docked at APLNG's terminal in Gladstone harbour in late November, which prompted upstream operator Origin to cut flows to the liquefaction plant and APLNG to defer three cargoes to 2024.

APLNG exported 134PJ (2.4mn t) of LNG through 34 cargoes for January-March, 8pc up from 124PJ and 32 cargoes the previous quarter and 4pc up on the 129PJ and 33 cargoes shipped in January-March 2023.

Total APLNG production for July 2023-March 2024, the first three quarters of Origin's fiscal year to 30 June, was 519PJ, 4pc higher than 498PJ a year earlier, because of effective well and field optimisation activities, fewer maintenance disruptions and the continuing benefit of reducing workover backlog resulting in more wells being on line, Origin said.

The terminal will take half a train of capacity off line for 12 days in June, following a two-day maintenance period in January.

APLNG's domestic gas sales were 36PJ, steady on the previous quarter but higher by 24pc from the 29PJ sold a year earlier. Gas sales volumes for Origin's energy markets business fell by 5pc to 36PJ from 38PJ in January-March 2023.

Origin said it continues to negotiate a deal with the government of New South Wales (NSW) regarding the 2,880MW Eraring coal-fired power station's future. The power plant had been due to close in 2025 but insufficient new generation capacity has been completed in NSW for this to occur.

"We continue to progress large-scale batteries under development at Eraring and Mortlake power stations and recently announced our first storage offtake agreement from the Supernode battery in Queensland, taking Origin's storage portfolio to around 1GW of capacity once these batteries come on line," chief executive Frank Calabria said on 30 April.

By Tom Major

APLNG results
	Jan-Mar '24	Oct-Dec '23	Jan-Mar '23	y-o-y % ±	q-o-q % ±

Production (PJ)	176	167	165	7	5
Sales (PJ)	168	160	158	6	4
Commodity revenue (A$mn)	2,303	2,149	2,583	-11	7
Average realised LNG price ($/mn Btu)	12.17	11.88	14.50	-15	3
Average realised domestic gas price (A$/GJ)	6.90	6.39	6.17	12	8
Source: Origin Energy

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