Petrobras Fails to Lease out LNG Terminal
Brazil's Petrobras said on February 1 it had failed to attract any binding bids for the leasing of its LNG import terminal and associated facilities in the northeast state of Bahia.
The contest will be restaged, with only companies pre-qualified before the previous tender allowed to take part. The Bahia terminal can import up to 700mn ft3/day or 7.2bn m3/yr of gas and is connected to two onshore delivery points via a 45-km pipeline. The leasing contract does not cover the terminal's floating storage and regasification unit, but extends to all other infrastructure including power generation and supply equipment at an onshore gas-fired electricity station at the Madre de Deus Waterway terminal.
Petrobras launched a tender for the lease contract in August. Among the pre-qualified companies were Golar Power, Gas Natural do Brasil, Bahiagas, Repsol LNG, BP Energy do Brasil, Compass gas e Energia, Total Gas & Eletricidade do Brasil, Eneva, Shell, Excelerate Energy and BG do Brasil. But only Golar LNG submitted a binding offer, and was later disqualified. The former head of Golar LNG's Hygo Energy Transition unit, Eduardo Antonello, stepped down in October after Brazilian prosecutors accused him of bribery as part of the 'Car Wash' investigation.