Australia’s GLNG project ships milestone cargo to Korea

The Santos-operated GLNG export plant in Australia shipped its 200th liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from Curtis Island near Gladstone to South Korea.

The LNG vessel, YK Sovereign, docked at the Kogas-operated Incheon terminal on Monday this week, according to a Santos statement.

Santos CEO Kevin Gallagher said in the statement that the natural gas industry is building a better future for hundreds of millions of people throughout the Asian region.

“For the next two decades, the International Energy Agency expects natural gas to grow more than any other energy type, to a market share of more than a quarter of all global energy demand,” Gallagher said.

“Population growth, rapid urbanisation and the need to clean up air pollution across Asia will drive demand for Australian LNG,” he said.

He added that as as a lower carbon alternative to coal, natural gas would continue to play a key role in the pathway to lower carbon emissions.

“If all of Australia’s LNG exports from next year were used to replace legacy coal-fired power generation in Asia, the emissions saving would be 300 million tonnes a year,” Gallagher said.

The GLNG project shipped its first cargo of the fuel in October 2015.

The project involves the production of coal seam natural gas in the Surat and Bowen basins in eastern Queensland, which surround the regional centres of Roma and Fairview.

Gas is being piped then 435 kilometres to the two-train liquefaction plant on Curtis Island.

The project is a joint venture compromising Santos, Petronas, Total and Kogas.