Taiwan has agreed to invest up to $4.4 billion in the Alaska LNG project and commit to buying 30% of its output over a period of 20 years, President Trump said, as quoted by AFP, during a campaign rally in Alaska.
Earlier today, Taiwan confirmed its intention to spend over $4 billion on the Alaska LNG project and commit to buying liquefied gas from the new facility, which is yet to be built, along with a pipeline to carry the gas to the export terminal.
According to a report in Focus Taiwan, the country’s state energy company CPC Corp. will buy 6 million tons of liquefied gas annually from the Alaska facility, starting in 2032. This is in line with plans announced earlier this year by CPC to boost the share of U.S. liquefied gas imports to as much as a third of Taiwan’s total.
The $44-billion Alaska LNG project, strongly promoted and supported by the Trump administration over the past year, received a shot in the arm from the war in the Middle East as buyers began looking for greater diversification. Initially met with rather lukewarm interest from potential investors, the Alaska project has gained popularity among Asian LNG buyers and investors who previously relied heavily on Qatari liquefied gas that has been all but shut down for months now.
Alaska LNG is designed to deliver North Slope natural gas to Alaskans and export LNG to U.S. allies across the Pacific. An 800-mile pipeline is planned to transport the gas from the production centers in the North Slope to south-central Alaska for exports. In addition, multiple gas interconnection points will ensure meeting in-state gas demand.
The price tag of the project has made some commentators skeptical about its competitiveness with Gulf Coast projects but, according to project operator Glenfarne, the shipping costs of the LNG to be produced in Alaska will make it competitive, at 35% of the shipping costs for Gulf Coast liquefied gas.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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