Vietnam Expands Energy Horizons with New LNG Import Terminal Launch

vietnam has recently made a significant leap in its energy sector with the commissioning of its second liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at Cai Mep, as reported by industry sources. This milestone marks the nation’s inaugural LNG supply from a Russian producer.

According to ship tracking data from firms like LSEG and Kpler, the LNG cargo was sourced from Russia’s Sakhalin 2 plant on April 10 and was transported by the vessel blue Dragon 1, which docked at Cai Mep on May 25. This ship, boasting a capacity of 145,819 cubic meters and originally named Stena Blue Sky before being acquired by a Vietnamese company in April 2024, is set to be utilized for storage purposes.

An insider revealed that this delivery serves as part of the testing phase for the new terminal’s commissioning process. Located in Ba Ria Vung Tau province near Vietnam’s Mekong River delta, the Cai Mep facility is a collaborative effort between Hai Linh Company and Singapore’s Atlantic Gulf & Pacific LNG (AG&P), which operates under nebula Energy. The terminal is designed to manage an impressive throughput of up to 3 million metric tonnes per year (mtpa) and features storage capabilities of around 220,000 cubic meters.

Initially slated for commissioning between October and November last year according to AG&P LNG’s proclamation in August, plans shifted when they issued a tender in May for deliveries expected between August and september. The early arrival of this Russian shipment seems ahead of schedule compared to their revised timeline.

Even with this early cargo delivery, operations at Cai Mep are projected to be fully functional by early 2026. there are also discussions about expanding capacity further down the line.

Along with these developments at cai Mep, AG&P LNG and Hai Linh have established Vietfirst Gas—a joint venture aimed at distributing imported LNG throughout Vietnam.Cai Mep stands as Vietnam’s second operational LNG terminal following Thi Vai LNG’s launch in July 2023.Thi Vai has already received shipments from various countries including Indonesia as well as Qatar, malaysia, and Brunei sence it began operations.

References: gasprocessingnews; reuters