Philippines to start importing LNG next year

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines will start importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) next year as the LNG terminals of First Gen Corp. and Atlantic Gulf and Pacific Co. of Manila Inc. (AG&P) are on track for completion next year, according to a ranking official of the Department of Energy.

In a virtual forum organized by the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines, DOE Undersecretary Felix William Fuentebella said the AG&P terminal is going to be completed by the second quarter of 2022 to be followed by First Gen’s LNG terminal by the end of September that year.

In his presentation, the progress of the interim floating storage and regasification unit terminal of FGEN LNG Corp. and Tokyo Gas was at 19.95 percent as of June 30.

The facility in Batangas City will have a capacity of 5.26 million tons LNG per annum (MTPA) with an investment cost of $260 million or P13.28 billion.

Once completed, it will provide the gas supply requirements for the four existing gas plants and future gas power projects of First Gen.

Meanwhile, AG&P’s floating storage unit and onshore regasification terminal project, which has a cost of $300 million or P15.33 billion, commenced development as of May.

It will have a capacity of three MTPA and provide the LNG storage and regasification services for the 1,200-megawatt (MW) Ilijan power plant in Batangas by the end of June next year.

The LNG terminals will address the decline in natural gas supply from the Malampaya gas field—the country’s only gas source—which is projected to start next year, the DOE official said.

The Malampaya project is the country’s largest gas development to-date, which powers around 3,457 MW of power plants that provide power supply to the Luzon grid.

To prepare for the Malampaya’s depletion and ensure continued operations of natural gas plants, the DOE has pushed the development of LNG terminals to transform the country into an LNG trading and transshipment hub in Asia.

Apart from First Gen and AG&P, five more project proponents have been issued permits to put up LNG terminals in the country.

These proposed LNG terminals will deliver a combined total of 18 MTPA of LNG.