Vitol Asia Pte Ltd, a supply and trading unit of Vitol Group, will supply the LNG cargo to San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp from its global LNG portfolio, Vitol said in a statement. It did not disclose the volume and price. The purchase comes after spot LNG prices in Asia fell sharply from all-time highs last year when Russia cut gas supplies to Europe following the Ukraine war and sparked a flurry of purchases by European nations.
Faced with declining output from its Malampaya natural gas
field, the Philippines is the newest LNG buyer in the region as
it seeks alternative fuel supply for existing gas-fired power
plants producing more than 3,000 MW, including San Miguel
Global's 1,200-MW Ilijan power plant.
The LNG cargo will be delivered around mid-April to
Singapore-based Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific's (AG&P) import
terminal in the Philippines.
"This is a significant milestone and we look forward to
bringing more LNG supply from around the world to meet the
rising gas demand of the Philippines," said Vitol Asia president
Mike Muller.
The Ilijan plant in Batangas province, 142 km (88 miles)
south of Manila, is among several power generation assets of San
Miguel Global, a unit of Philippine conglomerate San Miguel Corp .
Ilijan's power output is expected to significantly augment
the country's generation capacity in the face of rapidly
increasing post-pandemic demand, Vitol said.
The plant has been undergoing repair works to improve its
fuel efficiency and generation ramp rate since last year after
gas supply from Malampaya ended, according to San Miguel.
AG&P's import facility will be the first to come online
among seven LNG terminal projects approved by the Philippine
government. It will have annual capacity of 5 million tonnes.
(Reporting by Enrico Dela Cruz; additional reporting by Marwa
Rashad in London)
