Bonny Gas Transport
| private, 100% subsidiary | |
| Industry | Oil and gas |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Headquarters | Abuja, Nigeria |
| Products | services: LNG-tankers |
Bonny Gas Transport or Bonny Gas Transport Bermuda Shell is a subsidiary of Nigeria LNG or NLNG which itself is a joint-venture of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Royal Dutch Shell, Total S.A. and Eni. It owns and operates a number of LNG tankers.[1]
The company
BGT was established in Bermuda in 1989 by the NLNG holding-company. It takes care of the transportation of the produce of this company. LNG is found in the fields on Bonny Island in the Niger Delta in Nigeria by the NNPC and then sold to Shell, Total and ENI. In 2005 the bulk of this gas goes to Europe and about 2% to Northern-America. The completion of Train 6 in 2008 increased the output of the Bonny Island fields, and of this new output approximately 50% goes to Europe and the other 50% to North-America.[2]
Ownership
As it is a 100% daughter of NLNG the ownership of BGT is the same as that of NNLNG and thus:
- NNPC = 49%
- Shell = 25,6%
- Total = 15%
- ENI = 10,4%
Financing
The income of BGT comes from long-term charters of their ships to NLNG: BGT's activities are limited to charter ships to NLNG and all gas found at the fields in the Bonny Island project by NNPC is sold to the above companies and the transport over the Atlantic Ocean to Europe or America is done via BGT ships.
Until 2006 BGT had a range of different (bank)loans to finance the buying and updating the LNG tankers. On October 2006 a deal was made with a consortium of banks to re-finance US$ 680 million. The original loans were related to 9 ships; this new deal also included the room to extend the fleet to the current 13 ships: in the years following the completion of this deal the output of the Bonny gas fields was expected and it was foreseen that additional shipping-capacity was required (see also the main-article on Nigeria LNG).
Because the gas and oil projects in the Niger Delta, including Bonny Island, are seen as high-risk investments, the financing of the ships to transport any produce from the area, are done via a separate company (BGT): even when the worst come to the worst and there would be no gas to be transported from the area the ships can be used anywhere in the world; thus financing the ships was seen as lower risk then financing the mother company itself.[2]
In January 2012 NNPC said that they were trying to raise US $ 1 billion to renew the fleet of their daughter-company BGT[3]
Activities
BGT was set up by Nigeria NLG to transport all LNG gas produced by its mother company in Nigeria to the customers in North America and Europe.[2]
Fleet
The website Helderline provides an overview of 13 of these ships.[1] All ships that are managed by BGT also sail for BGT[4]
Fleetlist
Per April, 2012, the company owns and operates the following LNG carriers:[1][4]
| Name | launched | shipyard build-number |
IMO number | tonnage | flag | former name or notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LNG Abuja | 1980 | General Dynamics buildnr:54 | 7619587 | 93.619 |  Bahamas | Lake Charles (1980–2000) |
| LNG Adamawa | 2005 | Hyundai buildnr:1470 | 9262211 | 118.000 |  Bermuda | |
| LNG Akwa Ibom | 2004 | Hyundai buildnr:1469 | 9262209 | 118.000 | Bermuda | sister-ship of LNG Adamawa |
| LNG Bayelsa | 2004 | Hyundai buildnr:1429 | 9241267 | 118.000 | Bermuda | sister-ship of LNG Adamawa |
| LNG Bonny | 1981 | Kockums Shipyard buildnr: 559 | 7708948 | 71.472 | Bermuda | Rhenania (1981–1991) |
| LNG Cross River | 2005 | Hyundai buildnr:1471 | 9262223 | 118.000 | Bermuda | sister-ship of LNG Adamawa, |
| LNG Edo | 1980 | General Dynamics buildnr:53 | 7619587 | 93.619 | Bahamas | Louisiana (1980–2000) sistership of LNG Abuja |
| LNG Finima | 1084 | Kockums Shipyard buildr:564 | 7702401 | 71.472 | Bermuda | LNG 564 (1984–1991) sistership of LNG Bonny |
| LNG Lagos | 1977 | Chantiers de l'Atlantique buildnr:26 | 7360124 | 68.122 | Bermuda | MV Gastor (1977–1993) |
| LNG Port Harcourt | 1976 | Chantiers de l'Atlantique buildnr:B26 | 7360136 | 68.122 | Bermuda | MV Nestor (1976–1993) sistership of LNG Lagos |
| LNG River Niger | 2006 | Hyundai buildnr:1472 | 9262235 | 118.000 | Bermuda | sister-ship of LNG Adamawa |
| LNG Rivers | 2002 | Hyundai buildnr:1295 | 9216298 | 114.354 | Bermuda | |
| LNG Sokoto | 2002 | Hyundai buildnr:1296 | 9216303 | 114.354 | Bermuda | sister-ship of LNG Rivers |
Sources and references
- 1 2 3 Helderline website with overview of ships operated by BGT Bermuda Shell, visited 21 April 2012
- 1 2 3 LNGPedia Refinancing of BGT, 2006, Ben Cobley. Retrieved: 21 April 2012
- ↑ Bloomberg website: Nigeria LNG in Talks for $1 Billion Funding for Shipping Unit, 30 January 2012. Visited: 21 April 2012
- 1 2 Helderline website with overview of ships sailing for BGT Bermuda Shell, visited 21 April 2012