The Bahía Blanca GasPort (BBGP), Argentina’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving facility, delivers much needed natural gas to local industrial, commercial and residential consumers. The BBGP is located approximately 400 miles south of Buenos Aires at the port city of Bahía Blanca. The BBGP is Excelerate’s dockside facility design which incorporates our jetty mounted articulated gas offloading arm (HP gas arm) and utilizes Excelerate Energy’s proprietary Energy Bridge technology. The BBGP is similar in design and function as Excelerate’s Teesside GasPort located near Middlesbrough in England. A number of design and operational characteristics were taken from our Teesside facility and used for the basis of design of the BBGP which was jointly developed by Excelerate Energy, YPF S.A. and Repsol-Stream. Ongoing operations and supply logistics of the BBGP are currently coordinated jointly between the three companies.
Of the many compelling features of the BBGP facility, the short time span from project inception to in-service along with the relatively low capital investment were the primary motivating factors behind the final investment decision. Using Excelerate Energy’s GasPort template, the facility required minimal land-based infrastructure, and as a result, the project took less than 12 months to design, permit and construct at a fraction of the cost of a traditional onshore LNG terminal. In addition, the inherent flexibility of the Energy Bridge design allows the BBGP to operate on a seasonal basis to deliver much needed natural gas to Argentina’s local market during the peak winter consumption period which has the effect of reducing year around operational and maintenance costs; especially when compared to a traditional land based facility.
At the BBGP, an Energy Bridge Regasification Vessel (EBRV™) is moored at the jetty to regasify LNG onboard and deliver high-pressure natural gas. The gas comes ashore via an integrated mid-ship gas manifold connected to Excelerate’s HP gas arm. The BBGP is capable of receiving natural gas at a base load rate of 400 million cubic feet per day (mmcf/d) with peak rates of up to 500 mmcf/d, and has the flexibility to accommodate increased throughput resulting from the higher vaporization capacity of future EBRVs. The BBGP is supplied with LNG from various global LNG supply sources and is expected to receive, on average, three cargoes of LNG per month. The LNG supply is delivered into one of Excelerate’s EBRVs through periodic refilling from a traditional LNG carrier (LNGC) via Excelerate’s ship-to-ship (STS) LNG transfer protocol. The LNG supply transfer takes place at the same time that LNG is being regasified and delivered into Argentina’s gas distribution system by the EBRV which ensures a continuous supply to the local market. This simultaneous dockside STS LNG transfer, regasification and natural gas delivery operation is another industry first which was accomplished by the teams from Excelerate, YPF, and Repsol-Stream.
The first season of operations at the BBGP went extremely well with a total of 133 days of continuous, uninterrupted service. The season was highlighted by a number of industry firsts including five dockside LNG STS transfers, two STS transfers with third party vessels and the simultaneous STS transfer, regasification and natural gas delivery operations. Excelerate accomplished five STS transfers during the first season at BBGP in 2008 and ten STS transfers during the second season in 2009. These recent STS transfer milestones have enabled Excelerate to continue to lead the industry in the area of STS transfer of LNG which has further enhanced Excelerate’s ability to provide additional flexibility for scheduling and fleet utilization.
The proven Energy Bridge technology solution, successful STS transfers of LNG, outstanding EBRV and HP arm performance, support from governmental agencies and significant cooperative efforts between the teams from Excelerate, YPF and Repsol-Stream have made the first two seasons of operations overwhelming success.
Key Information
First LNG receiving facility in South America
GasPort Dockside configuration with ship-to-ship transfer
Operates in closed-loop vaporization mode
Baseload throughput capacity 400 mmcf/d
Peak throughput capacity 500 mmcf/d
Direct access to industrial consumers and Argentina’s natural gas grid
High Pressure gas arm incorporated in design
Accomodates ship motions and incorporates “Quick Release”
Allows direct discharge from Energy Bridge Regasification Vessel
(EBRV) High Pressure Gas Manifold
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