Golar LNG

Golar LNG is liquefied natural gas shipping company based in London and registered in Bermuda. The company operates 13 LNG carriers and is listed on NASDAQ and is controlled by John Fredriksen.

History

The company was founded in 1946 as Gotaas-Larsen Shipping Company. In 1970 the company entered the LNG segment.

In 1973 the Gotaaas-Larsen oil tanker SS Golar Patricia exploded and sank off the Canary Islands. Her Gross Register Tonnage was 98,894 long tons (110,761 short tons; 100,481 t) and her deadweight tonnage was 216,326 long tons (242,285 short tons; 219,797 t), which at the time made was the largest ship ever lost at sea.

The Singapore-based Osprey Maritime bought the company in 1997. In 2000 the Fredriksen-controlled World Shipholding started a take-over of Osprey, completed in 2001 when the LNG segments of Osprey were transferred to Golar LNG. It was listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange in 2001 and NASDAQ in 2002, 30 August 2012 it was delisted from Oslo Stock Exchange.

In June 2015, Golar LNG announced a joint venture with Stolt-Nielsen to pursue production and distribution opportunities. The latter also made a strategic investment in the former, acquiring a 2.3 percent stake.

Liquefied natural gas

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH₄) that has been converted to liquid form for ease of storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volume of natural gas in the gaseous state. It is odorless, colorless, non-toxic and non-corrosive. Hazards include flammability after vaporization into a gaseous state, freezing and asphyxia. The liquefaction process involves removal of certain components, such as dust, acid gases, helium, water, and heavy hydrocarbons, which could cause difficulty downstream. The natural gas is then condensed into a liquid at close to atmospheric pressure by cooling it to approximately −162 °C (−260 °F); maximum transport pressure is set at around 25 kPa (4 psi).

LNG achieves a higher reduction in volume than compressed natural gas (CNG) so that the (volumetric) energy density of LNG is 2.4 times greater than that of CNG or 60 percent that of diesel fuel. This makes LNG cost efficient to transport over long distances where pipelines do not exist. Specially designed cryogenic sea vessels (LNG carriers) or cryogenic road tankers are used for its transport. LNG is principally used for transporting natural gas to markets, where it is regasified and distributed as pipeline natural gas. It can be used in natural gas vehicles, although it is more common to design vehicles to use compressed natural gas. Its relatively high cost of production and the need to store it in expensive cryogenic tanks have hindered widespread commercial use. Despite these drawbacks, on energy basis LNG production is expected to hit 10% of the global crude production by 2020.(see LNG Trade)