The natural gas revolution reversing LNG tanker trade

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/the-natural-gas-revolution-reversing-lng-tanker-trade/2012/12/07/dc826520-0c9e-11e2-bb5e-492c0d30bff6_story.html

COVE POINT, Md. — A vast dock stands a mile offshore here, its concrete legs planted in the water and its steel tentacles poised to suck natural gas in a liquid state from special refrigerated tankers up to a thousand feet long.

But on a recent clear fall afternoon, there wasn’t a tanker in sight. Inside a control room, operator Ron Keraga watched computer monitors that did not blink. The only flurry came from the sea gulls, which perched on the railings outside and then left a white trail behind them.

“Like any job, there’s going to be some downtime,” Keraga said.

In this case, a lot of downtime. Dominion Resources’ Cove Point terminal, originally designed in the 1970s, can import liquefied natural gas — or LNG — from up to 220 tankers a year. But this year only one tanker has unloaded here, back in May.



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