StatoilHydro, Sonatrach ink US LNG pact
http://www.energycurrent.com/index.php?id=3D3&storyid=3D9194
USA/NORWAY/ALGERIA: Algeria's Sonatrach and Norway's StatoilHydro on
March 1 signed an agreement sealing a long-term partner****p at the
Cove Point, Md., receiving terminal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in
the USA. As part of the arrangement, StatoilHydro will also purchase 1
billion cubic meters of LNG per year for delivery to Cove Point from
2009 to 2014.
The terms and conditions governing the arrangement have been agreed in
the form of binding Heads of Agreements.
The agreement was signed by Dr. Chawki Mohamed Rahal, Vice President
Commercialisation of Sonatrach, and K=E5re R=F8sandhaug, StatoilHydro
country president for Algeria, in the presence of Mohamed Meziane, CEO
of Sonatrach, and His Excellency Per Kristian Pedersen, the Norwegian
Ambassador to Algeria.
"This agreement allows Sonatrach to reinforce and consolidate its
position in the gas market of the Atlantic basin following the
acquisition of capacity at Isle of Grain in the UK, and to capture
arbitrage op****tunities with other markets," said Dr. Rahal. "It is
also a considerable advance in the progressive internationalization of
Sonatrach, in gaining downstream access in the world's largest gas
market in a way similar to what has already been achieved in the UK,
Spain and Italy."
"The agreement is an im****tant step in ensuring supply for the Cove
Point Expansion project while expanding StatoilHydro's presence in the
US," said Rune Bj=F8rnson, executive vice president for natural gas in
StatoilHydro. "It is an im****tant broadening of the successful
commercial relation****p between Sonatrach and StatoilHydro, and
strengthens StatoilHydro's role in the international LNG market,
supplementing equity supply from Sn=F8hvit."
StatoilHydro has a long-term throughput arrangement with Dominion, the
owner of the Cove Point receiving terminal. Since 2003, StatoilHydro
has delivered LNG to Cove Point from suppliers in Trinidad, Algeria
and Egypt. The company has access to a third of the im****t capacity
for LNG at the terminal, or about 2.4 billion cubic meters of gas
annually.
The im****t terminal at Cove Point is being expanded, and StatoilHydro
has secured all of the new capacity. StatoilHydro will achieve access
to capacity amounting to some 10 billion cubic meters of gas annually
from 2009.
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