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LNG — A new addition to Pakistan’s energy basket
The energy regime to witness a new era of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) providing the much sought after relief from the mounting pressure of rising demand for natural gas in Pakistan with the arrival of the floating storage and re-gasification vessels arrives at Port Qasim on March 10, 2015.
The private sector has played a significant role in materializing this project as the Engro Corporation has already completed the construction of the LNG Terminal at Port Qasim, which is ready to receive the vessel already on its way from Dubai to Karachi. The operation of country’s first LNG Terminal will start sometimes next week, which in fact will be the beginning of more LNG terminals both in Karachi and Gwadar Port.
The first Floating Storage and Re-gasification Unit (FSRU), leased to convert liquid natural gas into natural gas, is ready to leave for Pakistan on March 7 from Dubai. “We have given March 7, the date to leave Dubai for Pakistan and expect a green signal from the concerned authorities to bring FSRU vessel to Pakistan”, Engro Elengy’s chief executive officer, Shiekh Imranul Haque told in a media briefing . Engro Elengy, the company that won the contract to handle liquefied natural gas (LNG), has acquired this vessel on lease. It has built an LNG terminal, at Port Qasim for the purpose which is ready to receive shipments from March 10 onwards. “We are ready”, he said, adding, “the vessel would start operation the moment it gets green signal from the concerned authorities of the government”, he said.
Benefits of LNG
The present government, which has declared the energy sector as the first priority, is determined to address the chronic issue of energy shortage and working in different directions.
At the moment almost all gas consuming segments of the economy have to face the shortage of gas supplies which lead to under capacity utilization of various industries. The fertilizer, cement, textile industries are in real trouble while the citizens on the other hand had to bear shut downs of CNG at least for three day a week in Sindh and 4-5 days in Punjab.
With the addition of LNG the short supply problems will be resolved to a great extent said a leading industrialist in Karachi SITE Industrial area. The Engro Elengy has fulfilled its commitment by constructing all infrastructure facilities in record 300 days.
It may be noted that floating storage and re-gasification units (FSRUs), are purpose-built LNG tankers that incorporate onboard equipment for the vaporization of LNG and delivery of high-pressure natural gas. These vessels load in the same manner as standard LNG tankers at traditional liquefaction terminals and also retain the flexibility to discharge in three distinct ways: As a liquid at a conventional LNG receiving terminal; as a gas through the FSRU’s connection with a subsea buoy in the hull of the ship; and as a gas through a high-pressure gas manifold located forward of the vessel’s LNG loading arms. Imranul Haque said “concerned authorities are yet to announce a firm agreement with any LNG supplier. Elengy, a subsidiary of Engro, is dealing the project, which has a total cost of $133.3 million. Engro financed construction of jetty, a 24-kilometre long pipeline, and got the lease of FSRU on its own.
Besides, the Asian Development Bank loan, International Finance Corporation (IFC) and local banks will provide $20 million and $50 million, respectively. The remaining amount $ 33.3 million has come in as equity investment.
FSRU: floating storage & re-gasification unit
Excelerate’s Energy Bridge® floating storage and re-gasification units (FSRUs), are purpose-built LNG tankers that incorporate onboard equipment for the vaporization of LNG and delivery of high-pressure natural gas. These vessels load in the same manner as standard LNG tankers at traditional liquefaction terminals and also retain the flexibility to discharge in three distinct ways.
These are: As a liquid at a conventional LNG receiving terminal; as a gas through the FSRU’s connection with a subsea buoy in the hull of the ship; and as a gas through a high-pressure gas manifold located forward of the vessel’s LNG loading arms.
Specialized equipment
— The Energy Bridge FSRUs are designed to incorporate certain equipment and processes onboard to accomplish the task of offshore LNG vaporization. The five major components are: High-pressure cryogenic pumps, which bring the LNG from the cargo tanks up to pressure prior to vaporization; Shell-and-tube vaporizers, which convert the LNG back to vaporous natural gas.
— Oversized boiler, which provides the steam and power necessary to sustain vessel operations and the shipboard re-gasification process.
— STL buoy compartment, which is designed to accommodate a submerged turret-loading buoy system, which serves as the mooring system for the vessel; Reinforced LNG tanks and pump tower, which are designed to withstand the sloshing loads encountered throughout loading levels while at sea.
Vaporization of LNG
To accomplish the task of offshore LNG vaporization, our FSRUs may be operated in one of three ways:
Closed-loop mode, in which steam from the FSRU boilers is used to heat fresh water circulated through the shell-and-tube vaporizers in the re-gasification plant. This results in minimal usage of seawater by the FSRU; Open-loop mode, in which relatively warm seawater is drawn in through the FSRU’s sea chests. This warm seawater is used as a heat source and passed through the shell of the shell-and-tube vaporizers, causing the vaporization of the LNG. During this process, the temperature of the seawater is lowered by approximately 13 degrees Fahrenheit (7 degrees Celsius).
For this reason, the open-loop mode is not applicable for water temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit; Combined mode, in which seawater at temperatures between 45 and 58 degrees Fahrenheit can be used when heated by steam from the FSRU boilers to provide sufficient heat for the vaporization of the LNG.
The maximum rate of discharge of the natural gas from our Energy Bridge® FSRU into the deepwater port will be determined by a combination of the availability of capacity on downstream pipelines and the re-gasification capabilities of the facilities located onboard each FSRU.
