Malaysian energy giant Petronas reported a drop in its quarterly liquefied natural gas (LNG) sales, while its profit decreased by 29 percent compared to the April-June period last year.
The company’s LNG sales dropped by 10 percent to 7.60 million tonnes during April-June compared to 8.44 million tonnes in the same quarter last year.
LNG sales were down compared to the previous quarter’s 8.88 million tonnes.
During the January-June period, LNG sales dropped by 0.84 million tonnes to 16.48 million tonnes.
Petronas said in its results report that gross LNG sales volume decreased mainly due to lower plant production.
200 Bintulu LNG cargoes
During the first half, Petronas delivered 200 LNG cargoes from the giant 30 mtpa Bintulu LNG export facility in Sarawak.
The firm also completed 2760 virtual pipeline system and LNG bunkering deliveries to remotely located customers and to the marine industry, it said.
The Bintulu plant, which has shipped more than 12,000 LNG cargoes since it started operations back in 1983, consists of nine trains and supplies key demand centers such as Japan, South Korea, China, and Taiwan.
The LNG complex includes MLNG Satu, MLNG Dua, MLNG Tiga, and the most recent Train 9 which started commercial operations in 2017.
FLNG
Besides the onshore facilities, Petronas continues to expand its FLNG business and has awarded the engineering, procurement, construction, commissioning (EPCC) contract for the nearshore floating LNG project in Sabah.
Japan’s LNG engineer JGC and South Korea’s Samsung Heavy will build the third floating LNG producer for Petronas and the unit will have capacity of 2 million tonnes of LNG per year. It is scheduled for completion in 2027.
Upon completion, the nearshore LNG plant will increase Petronas’ LNG production from floating LNG facilities from 2.7 mtpa to 4.7 mtpa.
Currently, Petronas operates two floating LNG facilities, namely the 1.2 mtpa PFLNG Satu, as well as the 1.5 mtpa PFLNG Dua, both located offshore Sabah.
Petronas said it had delivered 19 LNG cargoes from these two floating LNG producers during the January-June period.
Profit drops on lower prices
Petronas reported profit of 16.4 billion ringgit ($3.53 billion) for the second quarter, compared to 23 billion ringgit in the year before.
In the January-June period, profit dropped from 46.4 billion ringgit in 2022 to 40.2 billion ringgit this year.
Revenue dropped by 13.4 percent to 79.9 billion ringgit in the second quarter due to lower average realized prices for all products, Petronas said.
In the January-June period, revenue stood at 170.3 billion ringgit, compared to 170.4 billion ringgit last year.
Petronas said that oil and gas prices “remain volatile, influenced by persistent economic headwinds and energy security concerns.”
“Amidst these challenges, Petronas remains resolute in delivering energy responsibly in support of its growth and sustainability agenda, both in Malaysia and internationally,” the firm said.