According to the latest Reuters report, Australia’s New South Wales state has approved plans for a floating LNG import terminal at Port Kembla.
The Port Kembla project is backed by a Japanese consortium and will cost an estimated $176 million. It is the first in the latest wave of five of LNG import terminals proposed in Australia to receive planning approval.
All five terminals are part of larger scheme which aims to cut gas prices and avert a significant supply shortage that is expected to hit the country’s southeast region in the 2020’s.
Having received approval for the Kembla project, Australian Industrial Energy (AIE), the joint venture responsible for the berth of the floating LNG import facility, will now focus on lining up customers.
AIE reportedly aims to take a final investment decision (FID) on the project in mid-2019.