Islamabad-The first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal of Pakistan Engro Elengy Terminal (EETL) has completed the transfer of over 20 million metric tonnes of LNG since 2015, by handling over 322 cargoes.
This is the highest volume handled by any floating LNG terminal in this time frame. EETL has also achieved another milestone through the send-out of more than 1000 billion cubic feet (BCF) of natural gas, equivalent to the energy required to generate around 175 million MW. EETL utilises the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Exquisite, which is co-owned by Excelerate Energy LP (Excelerate) and Nakilat. The terminal has a storage capacity of 150,900 cubic meters and peak regasification capacity of up to 690 million cubic feet per day (MMCFD). It currently fulfils as much as 15 per cent of Pakistan’s domestic daily natural gas requirements. As a result, more than $3 billion of savings have been generated for the national exchequer through import substitution of expensive furnace oil.
The first LNG terminal of Pakistan operated by EETL, a joint venture between Engro Corporation and Royal Vopak of the Netherlands, has set new industry records during its five years of safe and reliable operations to ensure energy security for Pakistan. Built-in a world record time of 332 days, EETL is recognized as one of the fastest built and most utilized regasification terminals in the world.
Following the Economic Coordination Committee’s approval, EETL and its partner Excelerate have secured a larger and more technologically-advanced FSRU Sequoia, which is poised to arrive at Port Qasim in 2021 after all regulatory and SSGC approvals. This will increase the terminal’s capacity by more than 150 MMCFD and storage capacity by more than 25,000 cubic meters to help reduce the gas supply shortfall. As a result, Pakistan can potentially save more than $45,000 per day in state-run LNG supply chain costs, with the private sector assuming risks and making investments under a Third-Party Access Framework (TPA). Once the sector opens under the TPA regime, an Onshore LNG asset is a next step towards the evolution of the Pakistani gas market. In this regard, Engro and Royal Vopak have already announced a project targeting final investment decision in the next 12 – 14 months.
The investment-friendly policies of the PTI government will enable investments of up to $600 million by Engro and its joint venture partner Royal Vopak in Engro Elengy Terminal and Engro Vopak Terminal.
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