Sinolam LNG Terminal

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Sinolam LNG Terminal is a proposed LNG terminal in Panama.

Location

The map below shows the approximate location of the proposed terminal on Isla Margarita, Colón, Panama.

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Project details

• Terminal owner: Sinolam Smarter Energy LNG Power Co.
• Parent company: Shanghai Gorgeous Investment Development Co Ltd
• FSU vessel name: GasLog Singapore
• FSU owner: GasLog
• Location: Isla Margarita, Colón, Panama
• Coordinates: 9.384621, -79.883050 (approximate)
• Capacity: 1.1 mtpa
• Status: Shelved
• Type: Import
• Financing:
• Start Year: 2024

Background

Sinolam LNG Terminal is designed to provide natural gas to the proposed Gas to Power Panama (GTPP) power station. The power plant and LNG terminal, together with an offshore FSU (floating storage unit), are the three key components of the project known as Gas to Power Panama (GTPP). Gas from the FSU would be piped to the onshore LNG terminal, where it would be regasified for use at the power station.

In 2020, Ethos Energy was awarded the operations and maintenance contract for 15 years valued at more than $36 million for GTPP. GTPP was to receive LNG from Royal Dutch Shell, and the shipping company GasLog Ltd won a ten year contract for a floating storage terminal to receive and store LNG. In July 2021, GasLog announced that its vessel GasLog Singapore had been retrofitted for service at the Sinolam terminal.

In July 2020, the environmental ministry of Panama rejected the FSU proposal citing social characterization, flora, and fauna as reasons the project is not environmentally viable. Resubmissions were delayed due to COVID-19.

In May 2021, Panama's national Public Service Authority granted an extension of the GTPP power plant's environmental license due to the COVID pandemic. Under the terms of the extended license, Sinolam was required to complete construction of the plant by August 2022 and place it into commercial service by March 2023, with the understanding that failure to comply with this timeline would result in suspension of the plant's license and jeopardize the entire gas-to-power project.

In February 2023, Panama's national public services authority approved an extended timeline for development of the GTPP power project, calling for the power plant to be commissioned no later than February 29, 2024; however, the government's revised authorization made no specific mention of the associated LNG terminal. Subsequently, in a March 2023 filing with the SEC, GasLog announced that it had received a January 23, 2023 notification from Sinolam terminating the charter under which GasLog was to supply an FSU for the terminal. In light of the above, the LNG terminal's future appeared uncertain as of July 2023.

In April 2024, the Panamanian government denied a request from Sinolam Smarter Energy to extend its permit for the GTPP power project through December 2025, and officially cancelled the license previously granted to the project.

As of September 2024 there had been no news of significant developments with the Sinolam terminal for more than two years, and the project was presumed to be shelved.