MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Peru en route to become significant LN gas exporter

Peru's liquefied natural gas exporting project will receive a 300 million US dollars loan from the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank, reported the bank.

The total cost of Peru's LNG project, which will be supplied by the Camisea field of southern Peru, is roughly 3.8 billion US dollars and would be the largest foreign direct investment in the history of Peru. Environmental organizations have fought to block projects using gas from Camisea. Peru wants to develop natural gas as part of a broader plan to gain energy self-sufficiency. Earlier this year, the Peruvian government elevated proven gas reserves in the country to about 15 trillion cubic feet (tcf). The Peru LNG project will include a natural gas liquefaction plant, a marine terminal and a 408 kilometer, 86 cm pipeline connecting the liquefaction plant to an existing gas pipeline. U.S. firm Hunt Oil, Spain's Repsol-YPF, South Korea's SK Energy and Japan's Marubeni have already invested some 800 million US dollars in the project. In related news Repsol-YPF announced a natural gas discovery with its Kinteroni X1 exploration well, drilled on Block 57 in Peru near the Camisea project. Initial production tests registered gas flows of 1 million cu m/d and 198 cu m/d of associated liquids. The field's reserves are estimated at 2 tcf of gas. Repsol-YPF is the operator with a 41% stake. Petrobras has 35.15% interest and Burlington Resources Inc. 23.85%. Peru's domestic demand for gas is estimated to total 6 tcf in the next 20 years, according to Energy and Mines Minister Juan Valdivia. Including the reserves in Blocks 88 and 56 of the Camisea project, the recently discovered gas by Repsol-YPF on Block 57, and the discoveries of BPZ Energy and Peruvian oil company Petro-Tech Peruana in northern Peru, the country's gas reserves could reach 16 tcf.