Japex’s Soma LNG terminal receives commissioning cargo

Japan Petroleum Exploration (Japex) received the first liquefied natural gas carrier at its Soma LNG terminal in Soma Port, currently undergoing commissioning.

The cargo of approximately 137,000 cubic meters of LNG was delivered on Wednesday, December 6, from Malaysia’s Petronas onboard the Puteri Intan Satu LNG carrier, Japex said in a statement.

The unloading operation will be carried out over a one week period, with the LNG cargo to be used for commissioning works at the terminal, focusing on operation safety.

The Soma LNG terminal is a large scale LNG terminal composed of a ground-type LNG storage tank with Japan’s largest class capacity of 230,000 cubic meters, two berths for ocean-going and domestic vessels, LNG vaporization equipment, and loading facilities for tank trucks.

Commissioning of the terminal began on December 1, with the aim for the full commencement of operation in March 2018.

Japex added that the vaporized gas of the LNG generated during the commissioning will be burned, noting that a flame will appear from the flame stack at the terminal during the burning of the vaporized gas.