InterOil optimistic over Papua New Guinea LNG

Spanish Market: Natural gas
14/05/13

London, 14 May (Argus) — US independent oil and gas company InterOil remains optimistic over its LNG plans in Papua New Guinea (PNG).

Cancellations and delays to LNG export projects in Australia mean that dominant LNG firms will be re-evaluating their portfolios, encouraging greater interest in alternative projects such as InterOil's Gulf LNG development, the firm said today. Delays and costs overruns have damaged the viability of Australian LNG projects, and led to the cancellation of Woodside's 12mn t/yr Browse project.

InterOil's Gulf LNG project is likely to be PNG's second LNG export project, with ExxonMobil's 6.6mn t/yr PNG LNG terminal expected to start up in 2014.

InterOil has received bids from potential partners for the project to participate in the development of the LNG facilities. Negotiations are continuing and all the qualifying bids have been approved by the government.

The partnership will include a sale of interest in the Elk and Antelope fields, from which the gas for export will be extracted. Appraisal drilling at the Antelope 3 well yielded better-than-expected results, and InterOil has also made a discovery at the nearby Triceratops gas field.

Gulf LNG has had a difficult time since its inception in 2009. InterOil almost lost the project last year after a dispute with the government over its export capacity.

InterOil wanted to build two LNG projects, consisting of a 2mn t/yr floating LNG facility and a 2mn t/yr onshore plant, but the government argued that this was in breach of a 2009 agreement to build an LNG terminal with 7.6mn-10.6mn t/yr capacity.

The dispute was eventually resolved with InterOil allowed to build two separate processing facilities with an initial minimum capacity of 3.8mn t/yr and the government increasing its stake in the project from 22.5pc to 50pc. A further condition was that InterOil had to bring in an experienced operator to run the upstream facilities.

InterOil's first-quarter results showed revenues up to $350mn from $338mn a year earlier, with profit of $4mn, down from $9.4mn in the first quarter of 2012.

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Trump to end military campaign in Yemen: Update

06/05/25

Trump to end military campaign in Yemen: Update

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US onshore crude output likely peaked: Diamondback

06/05/25

US onshore crude output likely peaked: Diamondback

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Trump to end military campaign in Yemen

06/05/25

Trump to end military campaign in Yemen

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US EIA will not release international outlook in 2025

06/05/25

US EIA will not release international outlook in 2025

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