Petronas to offer LNG carriers gassing up and cooling down at Bintulu

Petronas LNG signed a deal with Bintulu Port (BPSB), a unit of Bintulu Port Holdings, for the provision of marine services to support gassing up and cooling down (GUCD) of LNG carriers at the Bintulu Port for a period of three years.

The gassing up and cooling down is a specialized service to bring the storage tanks on LNG carriers, after dry-docking, to natural environment and later cool it down to cryogenic temperature (minus 160 degrees Celsius) before loading its next cargo.

The services at the Bintulu Port will commence in 2018, positioning Bintulu as one of the premier LNG hubs and making it one of the few terminals in the world to offer this facility, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

The liquefied natural gas for gassing up services will be supplied from the Petronas LNG complex in Bintulu.

Petronas LNG chairman Ahmad Adly Alias said this is the first time such service is offered in Malaysia.

In supporting the GUCD services, Bintulu Port will provide port and maritime services with attractive rates which will provide cost savings to the LNG vessel operators.