Excelerate hits 2000th LNG transfer milestone in Bay

Bangladesh has reached the highest level of output of natural gas with around 837 million cubic feet per day (mcfpd) in March, thanks to increased LNG imports to meet the rising domestic demand.

In order to meet local needs for natural gas in the country, the government is importing LNG to supply to the national grid. Excelerate Energy, a US-based LNG company that supplies liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Bangladesh has touched a milestone by conducting its 2000th commercial ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of LNG at Moheshkhali Floating LNG (MLNG) terminal located in the Bay of Bengal.

For a more resilient gas and power grid for the Chattogram region, a total of 144,191 cubic metres of LNG were transferred this week using the double-banked LNG transfer system through Excelerate’s Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU), an excellence and conventional LNG carrier in Bay of Bengal.

In a statement on Saturday, Excelerate Energy’s Chief Operating Officer Cal Bancroft expressed his satisfaction for achieving the milestone of 2000th STS transfer in the Bay of Bengal as Excelerate represented a 20 percent uplift in gas supply to Bangladesh.

“Having achieved this milestone safely is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team and vessel crews worldwide,” he said in the statement.

Since 2018, Excelerate has provided clean, reliable energy to Bangladesh through its two FSRUs located offshore in the Bay of Bengal while it has so far successfully transferred over 236,405,000 cubic meters of LNG using its STS protocol worldwide in last 14 years after conducting its first commercial STS transfer in 2007.  

“Operating in challenging locations like the Bay of Bengal is why customers can count on our teams to deliver much-needed energy,” Bancroft said. 

The Excelerate’s MLNG terminal is the Bangladesh’s first LNG import facility while its two FSRU have been allowing for a more resilient gas and power grid for the Chattogram region that were previously underserved. 

The US-based energy company has so far imported over 157 cargoes of LNG and delivered an excess of 500 million MMBtu of natural gas into the Bangladeshi market.

In March, Bangladesh reached its highest level of gas output with around 837 million cubic feet per day of natural gas while the government continues to increase its LNG imports to meet the rising domestic demand.