LNG Commercial Operations - G-51

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) has provided international mobility to natural gas, which now provides around 25% of the world primary energy. Being the cleanest fossil fuel natural gas consumption is forecasted to grow in all future scenarios. With the entry of various actors, including Trading companies, the LNG value chain is becoming increasingly complex, and solid understanding and management of the interfaces have become crucial to identify and realise additional margin opportunities. This course gives a concise introduction to the LNG business. Thereafter, the elements of the LNG value chain are described and analysed. A Business Activity Model along the value chain will be developed and discussed in depth, covering the following key processes: Buy Gas -> Transport Gas -> Liquefy Gas -> Sell LNG/Products -> Ship LNG -> Regasify LNG Contracts defining the Commercial aspects for each of these activities will be examined and the associated Commercial operations, will be described. Gas Supply Agreements (GSA), Sale & Purchase Agreements (SPA), Ship Chartering (VOY), and Terminal Use Agreements (TUA) s are included. Good practice for developing and executing Annual Gas Supply and Annual Product Delivery (ADP) plans and Specific Delivery Schedules (SDS) will be shown within the framework of a so-called Integrated Activity Planning & Scheduling. Roles and responsibilities of relevant positions, requiring a multi-functional approach, will be examined. Most of these critical positions are located at the interfaces of Operational, Shipping, Commercial functions and their seamless cooperation under expert guidance is essential for optimizing the value chain for the any company having an interest in the LNG value chain. Real life experience based hands-on exercises will facilitate deeper understanding. These include; Gas/LNG property and price parity calculations Custody Transfer issues, performance Contract Management – Annual Delivery Programme design and execution strategies LNG property (Heating Value/Wobbe Index) adjustment (Nitrogen injection-UK, LPG injection-JP) LNG Shipping freight calculations, diversion opportunity generation and negotiations Excel based tools/models will be provided to the participants for these exercises.