LNG Demand Boosts Shippers
Bermuda tanker operators will profit handsomely from a global spike in demand for liquefied natural gas [LNG], the Bloomberg financial news service is reporting today [Jan.3]
Tankers hauling liquefied natural gas at sea will earn record rates in 2012 as demand reaches an all-time high, beating returns from vessels carrying oil and coal.
The tankers, each holding enough gas to meet about 25 percent of peak daily winter demand in the UK, will earn as much as $200,000 a day this year, from $140,000 at the end of 2011.
That means the most profit ever for Bermuda’s Golar LNG Ltd. and Teekay LNG Partners LP, which operate 33 of the vessels, Bloomberg analysts have estimated
“Not all owners may benefit from higher rates. Companies typically lease out tankers on long-term charters at fixed prices,” said Bloomberg. “Of the total fleet of 372 vessels, only 44 were available for hire as of the middle of last month
“[For example],Bermuda-based Hoegh LNG Holdings Ltd. has all of its fleet leased on longer duration charters, according to their websites.”
Golar controls more than 25 percent of the available vessel supply over the next three years, according to analysts at Morgan Stanley.
It’s estimated the Bermuda-based company will report net income of $168.1 million for this year, compared with a predicted $70.7 million for 2011of 10 analyst estimates.
Teekay LNG Partners will report profit of $107.9 million for 2012, compared with a projected $83.9 million last year, the mean of four estimates shows.
Natural gas’s share of global energy demand will climb to 23 percent by 2035 from 21 percent now as oil’s contribution declines to 27 percent from 33 percent, according to the Paris-based International Energy Agency.
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