Why shale gas is great news for LNG
Shale looks like LNG’s nemesis – on the surface at least. Look harder. It sure killed THE big hope of the LNG world – namely the prospect of the US becoming a premium LNG buyer. But this also has jump-started…
LNG is cold (when it should be cool)
It’s incredible how misunderstood Natural Gas and especially LNG is by the general public. It’s the solution to many of our problems (at least energy-wise) and still, it has a bad name. That’s a shame as this stuff is so…
A letter from Obama
This is going to be a very long post. About 2 months ago I had written an open letter to President Obama. Here is his response. Right below it I explain why I think that LNG as a fuel is…
Caribbean LNG – the steel pan paradigm
The Caribbean would be the perfect region for LNGification. It has not happened yet which is a shame as the immaculate pearl it evokes in our phantasies has been tarnished. But things are about to change, very dramatically so. Many…
Going nuclear – LNG’s natural friend
Nuke power is commonly seen as a big competitor to LNG as a primary energy source. I disagree. They are like the Yin and the Yang and complement each other. Here is why. Funny, isn’t it? Not too long ago…
Beating the megatrains – the nimble revolution
LNG has been a history of ever larger liquefaction trains. It all culminated in the construction of the Qatari super-trains. One of those monsters is able to satisfy the needs of more than the entire gas consumption of a small…
Another option for Central Asian gas
Central Asians are a strange region out of the Natural Gas world. They have lots of it. They would like to export it. But that’s very hard. In the meantime, something much more worthwhile could be done with it. Natural…
LNG from the US – between drivel and miracle drug
Does anyone still remember the US LNG import adventure? Seems to be a long way off. Today, everyone talks about the US becoming a huge LNG exporter. How about that? Since I have gotten interested in LNG I don’t stop…
What your experience is worth in a wormhole
Expertise can be a drawback. Sometimes it’s outright deadly. Some things – sometimes – change so deeply, so radically that old experiences do not even serve as a valid foundation for new learning anymore. It becomes so harmful – you…
Is LNG – or is it not – a commodity?
To those outside the nebulous Natural Gas world, LNG is the stuff that evokes phantasies of miracle trades and fast riches. LNG has been dubbed a commodity many times over the last 10 years alone. But is the status deserved?…
Give to get – a winning way in LNG
Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. We all know the quote from Einstein. But that’s what happens in LNG all the time. Here is an alternative proposal. Are you concerned with how…
The China LNG story – more toxic than the US story was
China holds the promise of salvation for many LNG projects. The whole scenario curiously smacks of the US gamble less than a decade ago. Why is China more dangerous? Do you remember the US LNG map from around 2005? There…
Business Development in Natural Gas – get the Frontschwein out
Business Developers have to become a Frontschwein to face the challenges of the European Natural Gas business. That’s no easy feat for companies that are still pretty monopolistic – and stiff – in spirit. Natural gas is going through a…
Behold the future and marvel
The future of energy will not be the linear continuation of the past. It will be a wild, twisted, and contorted process and the world will look very different from now 20 years down the road. I am a futurologist.…
LNG in the Black Sea – a pipedream?
Ukraine has an LNG problem. It’s a major blunder and it looks like LNG in the region is doomed. As strange as it sounds, there might be a bright future for LNG in the Black Sea still. For many people,…
European energy utilities are traders now – an oxymoron
Trading is not for everyone. One must want it and then do it right. If your priorities lie elsewhere, you should think again before jumping in. In 1900, Frank Baum published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Little Dorothy and her…
The power of pain – LNG newbies in trouble
New LNG capacity owners find themselves in excruciating economic pain. They have only themselves to blame but this crazy situation might hold the seeds for them, to become the superstars of the gas age. Or else they die. Those who…
Are your contacts worth anything in LNG business development?
Those well-connected are supposed to be the magic cure to a rotten LNG portfolio. They are not so important, after all. It is said that those who are well-connected get ahead in the business world. This is most certainly true…
Frankenstein disease in LNG contracts
LNG agreements pieced together from dead contractual bodies are dangerous. Still many see them as their only source of inspiration. They can do better. Have you ever heard of Frankenstein’s disease? No? Let’s be frank. I have invented the name.…
Gas price formulas and the Big Mac Index
Oil price links are finally coming to an end in Europe. They have eked an existence as Zombies of the energy world as the fundamental mechanism destroying them was not American shale but free markets. Back in 2005, I was…
LNG supply for Asia – fighting the Hydra
New Asian LNG buyers (outside the JKT and China) have a problem. They are perceived to be in the “I will pay any price for LNG” club by sellers. Many of them face vastly different situations from each other in…