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Singapore LNG Corporation Pte Ltd (SLNG) has performed its first small-scale liquefied natural gas (LNG) gas-up/cool-down and reload at its terminal on Jurong Island.

The operation was carried out between June 18-20 for the newly built, 6,500-cubic-metre (cbm) Cardissa - an LNG bunker vessel owned by Shell and co-financed by the European Union's Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) that will be used to perform deliveries to customers in northwest Europe.

The operation was conducted at the SLNG Terminal's Secondary Jetty, which is originally designed to accommodate LNG vessels between 60,000 cbm and 265,000 cbm in size.

Compatibility studies are said to have been carried out in advance to ensure that the vessel could safely call at the jetty. The studies included checking whether the vessel's equipment would be able to connect with the equipment at the Secondary Jetty, and verifying that the marine conditions were adequate to ensure that the operations could be conducted smoothly.

Prior to this, the smallest LNG carrier that had called at the SLNG Terminal for unloading or reloading was approximately 65,000 cbm in size.

Commenting on the Cardissa operation, John Ng, CEO of SLNG, said: "The successful completion of our first small-scale LNG reload operation is significant as it demonstrates the SLNG Terminal's ability to play the role of LNG supply hub for the region. The terminal is able to break LNG cargoes into smaller parcels and facilitate deliveries of small volumes of LNG to other terminals in the region, or as bunker fuel to ships in our port.

"We are already looking ahead to further enhance our capabilities in this area, by exploring possible modifications to our Secondary Jetty to accommodate LNG vessels as small as 2,000 cbm. This is expected to come onstream in 2019."

Image: John Ng, CEO of Singapore LNG Corporation Pte Ltd