State-owned Oman LNG delivered 173 cargoes of liquefied natural gas from its Qalhat complex in 2023, down by three cargoes compared to the year before, while its revenue decreased by 15.5 percent year-on-year to $4.9 billion.
Oman LNG delivered 176 cargoes in 2022, 163 in 2021, 155 in 2020, and 166 in 2019.
According to Oman LNG’s 2023 annual report, out of the 173 LNG cargoes delivered last year 94 percent were contracted cargoes and 6 percent were spot supplies.
Oman produced 11.5 mtpa of LNG, exceeding the enhanced nameplate capacity. This compares to 11.5 mtpa in 2022, 10.6 mtpa in 2021, 10.2 mtpa in 2020, and 10.7 mtpa in 2019.
Oman LNG operates three liquefaction trains at its site in Qalhat near Sur and the trains maintained an “exceptionally high level”, standing at 95 percent, alongside a plant utilization rate of 92 percent last year, it said.
Besides LNG cargoes, Oman LNG said that 31 NGL cargoes were lifted in 2023.
Net profit at $1.5 billion
Oman LNG did not reveal the reasons behind the drop in its 2023 revenue to $4.9 billion from $5.8 billion last year.
The company’s revenue reached $3.3 billion in 2022, $2.5 billion in 2021, and $3.3 billion in 2019.
Net profit also declined from $1.9 billion in 2022 to $1.5 billion last year. Previously, Oman LNG reported net profit of $0.9 billion in 2021, $0.7 billion in 2020, and $1.1 billion in 2019.
“The extraordinary year unfolded against the backdrop of a global energy crisis in Europe – a rolling effect from 2022 – accompanied by steadily increasing demand from key markets in Asia,” Oman LNG’s CEO, Hamed Al Naamany, said in the report.
“We achieved a second consecutive record-breaking financial performance, highlighting the strength and reliability of our long-term agreements,” he said.
“Oman LNG remained active in the spot market and contracts optimization leveraging increased agility and deals that yielded over $1 billion in upside,” the CEO said.
Shareholders and supply deals
Al Naamany noted that Oman LNG last year signed shareholding deals with international companies, including Shell and TotalEnergies.
Besides Oman LNG and Qalhat LNG shareholding agreements, Oman LNG, in which the government of Oman holds 51 percent, also signed a gas supply agreement with state-owned Integrated Gas Company (IGC) to extend the gas supplies beyond 2024.
Oman LNG in collaboration with its shareholders, approved the extension of the company’s operations beyond 2024 that linked these key agreements for a period of 10 years from 2025 to 2034 for Oman LNG and 2026 to 2029 for Qalhat LNG.
As a result of these deals, Oman LNG secured sales term commitments up to 10.4 mtpa through the execution of term sheet agreements with several buyers and shareholders, expanding the company’s footprint into new regions across Asian and European markets, the CEO said.
Oman LNG recently signed a 10-year SPA with its shareholder TotalEnergies for 0.8 mtpa of LNG from 2025, and a 10-year SPA with Botas for 1 mtpa of LNG.
Oman LNG also signed a 10-year SPA for 1.6 mtpa of LNG with its shareholder Shell and it also signed a 10-year SPA for 0.8 mtpa of LNG with Japan’s Jera,
The LNG producer and German gas importer Securing Energy for Europe (SEFE) recently also finalized their previously announced LNG deal for 0.4 mtpa of LNG between 2026 and 2029.