Dutch Gate receives US LNG cargo today

The 162,400m³ BW Paris arrived at the Netherlands' 8.7mn t/yr Gate LNG terminal earlier today carrying a US cargo.

The tanker cast off from the 5.75mn t/yr Cove Point terminal on 24 February.

The delivery is the second US cargo and second overall to arrive at Gate so far this month. At least three more deliveries are expected later this month, with another from the US and one from Russia in the coming days and a Peruvian cargo that could be unloaded at the end of the month.

The deliveries could help quick sendout to continue in the coming days. Regasification has stepped up so far this month, rising to 301 GWh/d on 1-4 March from 190 GWh/d in February and just 16.7 GWh/d in January. Sendout reached as high as 344GWh on 2 March, the quickest for any day since the 386GWh on 24 November (see graph).

But sendout will need to slow later this month unless more LNG is sent to Gate. Even if the BW Paris and the two cargoes expected in the coming days discharge full cargoes, sendout of 301 GWh/d would completely deplete Gate's inventories by 19 March. Stocks at the terminal were only 960GWh yesterday morning, about 25pc of the 3.8TWh at which they have peaked in recent years. And this was despite the arrival of a cargo on board the 173,000m³ Magdala on 3 March.

By Jacob Mandel

Dutch LNG stocks and sendout