AG&P LNG acquires Australia's Venice Energy and develops South Australian import terminal

The Singapore-based Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific LNG (AG&P LNG) has agreed to acquire the Australian energy infrastructure developer Venice Energy and build its Outer Harbor Import Terminal in South Australia.

AG&P LNG aims to have the LNG import terminal at Port Adelaide operational by the first quarter 2027. This was stated in a Thursday statement.

The terminal will have an annual import capacity of two million metric tonnes. It will be constructed by converting a LNG carrier with a volume of 145,000 cubic metres into a floating storage unit and regasification (FSRU). The FSRU's maximum send-out capacity will be 400 million standard cubic foot of gas per day.

The transaction will be financed by Florida-headquartered investment and development firm Nebula Energy, which owns the majority stake in AG&P LNG, the statement added.

Venice Energy's Outer Harbor terminal is ready, with all the permits needed. "This gives us a distinct advantage over any other LNG import terminal proposal in the region," AG&P Chairman Peter Gibson said.

Venice Energy stated in October that the project approval would reduce gas shortages throughout Australia's southeast by mid-2026.

The Australian Competition Regulator said that the east coast of Australia could be facing gas shortages by 2027. This is a year sooner than originally forecast.

The warning comes shortly after Australia’s energy regulator warned that the region is facing an immediate shortage of gas, due to a cold snap driving up demand for power and heating while weather conditions have hindered wind and solar power production.

The second largest LNG exporter in the world produces more than enough gas to meet its own domestic needs, but much of it is sold for export.

Venice Energy, in a statement released in October last year, said that Origin Energy was in discussions to import LNG at the Outer Harbor LNG Terminal and would be the only user for ten years.

(source: Reuters)