Edison: US-made gas to replace LNG from Qatar

Once again, it is gas 'made in the USA' that comes to the rescue of Italia, which has been orphaned by Qatar's LNG due to the war in the Persian Gulf. Edison - holder of Italy's largest supply contract with Qatar Energy - reports that it has already managed to replace seven of the ten loads that Doha should have sent between mid-April and June to the Rovigo regasification plant, but will not be able to deliver: volumes totalling 1.4 billion cubic metres, on which the force majeure clause has been applied. Well, six of these 'replacement' cargoes are certain to come from the United States and most probably the seventh, which is gas in the portfolio of a major operator, explain from Foro Buonaparte.

Edison is optimistic that the other three cargoes will also be procured shortly. Which again could come from overseas, thanks to the providential agreement at the end of March that put an end to the long dispute with Venture Global, which had been in arbitration for three years over the delayed start-up of LNG supplies from Calcasieu Pass, a terminal in Louisiana that began operating in 2022, but which made its first delivery to Edison only a year ago, after having sold (at a very rich profit) dozens of loads on the spot market.

Now peace is made, at least with Venture, which will lend a hand in overcoming the current difficulties by supplying additional LNG compared to contractual commitments: the first extra load is expected on 2 May in Rovigo - where the LNG tankers from Qatar used to dock - and others will follow, to plug an emergency whose end is not in sight.

"It is reasonable to expect that Qatar Energy's major strength will be extended beyond mid-June," admits Edison's CEO Nicola Monti, expressing confidence, however, in the ability to cope with it, with the help of all commercial partners, starting with Qatar Energy itself, which "has been a reliable supplier for 15 years and has declared its willingness to continue doing so".

Doha is in constant contact with customers. And while it has not yet been able to fully assess the extent of the damage to the Ras Laffan plant - where Iranian missiles knocked out two out of fourteen gas liquefaction trains - it is nonetheless "committed to offering LNG buyers targeted solutions to mitigate the medium- to long-term effects," said Fabio Dubini, Edison's executive vice president in charge of managing and optimising the Gas & Power portfolio.