According to a statement by Jordan’s energy ministry, the two countries signed on Sunday a cooperation agreement in Cairo under which Jordan will import LNG via Egypt over the next two years.
The deal was signed by Egypt’s EGAS and Jordan’s National Electric Company (NEPCO).
Jordan will import LNG via Egypt until the end of 2026, after which it will use an onshore regasification LNG terminal currently being implemented in Aqaba, the statement said.
This will help Jordan to secure LNG supplies in case of emergencies.
According to the statement, the deal includes determining priority use for the FSRU between Egypt and Jordan in case of simultaneous needs, with around 350 million cubic feet per day allocated to Jordan.
The ministry said this would represent 50 percent of the LNG terminal capacity for a single FSRU or 25 percent for two FSRUs.
Egypt’s Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources also confirmed the signing of the deal in a separate statement.
However, the ministries did not provide any details regarding the FSRU-based terminal.
Egypt currently imports LNG via Hoegh Evi’s 170,000-cbm FSRU, Hoegh Galleon, which is located in Ain Sokhna.
In May, Norwegian FSRU player Hoegh LNG confirmed it has signed a deal with Australian Industrial Energy (AIE) and EGAS to deploy the 2019-built FSRU Hoegh Galleon to Egypt.
Hoegh said the agreement with EGAS is for an interim period of June 2024 to February 2026 and will help Egypt to address potential gas shortages and fuel power plants during summer months.
Energos Eskimo
In August, AG&P and its unit Gas Entec and local partners Issa Haddadin secured a contract from Aqaba Development Corporation to build the onshore regasification LNG terminal at the port of Aqaba in Jordan.
In addition, Oslo-based BW LNG, a unit of Singapore’s gas shipping giant BW, recently signed a 10-year charter deal with NEPCO to deploy a floating storage unit (FSU) in Jordan.
The vessel will be moored at the Sheikh Sabah LNG terminal.
Jordan currently imports LNG via the 160,000-cbm FSRU, Energos Eskimo, located in Aqaba.
Energos Eskimo is owned by Energos Infrastructure, a part of US asset manager Apollo.
Jordan has chartered the FSRU until 2025, while Egypt also uses this unit to secure natural gas supplies.
Local reports suggest that EGAS would take on charter Energos Eskimo following its contract expiration in Jordan.
With this move, Egypt would host two FSRUs next year.
LNG Prime could not confirm this by the time this article was published.
