By Robert A. Emmanuel
Antigua and Barbuda is one step closer to having its first fully operational liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel terminal, which could transform the country’s energy sector.
Four new 1000 cubic meter LNG storage tanks recently arrived on island as part of the effort by Caribbean LNG Ltd—a collaboration between Antigua Power Company and Eagle LNG—to build an LNG fuel terminal.
The storage tanks will be individually transported to the Crabbs power plant over the next few days, with a ceremony to be held at the facility next week.
Minister responsible for APUA which has been overseeing the project, Melford Nicholas welcomed the arrival of the equipment and sees it bringing the country closer to energy diversification and reducing carbon emissions.
“Approximately three and a half years ago, [APUA] indicated to the Cabinet that it needed to have additional floating capacity of power, that the energy demands of the country were growing on pace with the economic development that was taking place,” he said.
He added that “the most important part of this project is the future economic benefits that this development will spawn in the sense that many of the new cruise ships are being built with LNG engines.”
Currently, electricity which is supplied throughout the country has mainly utilized heavy fuel oil as the generator’s main fuel source and the Minister hopes that this potential new fuel source could reduce the country’s carbon footprint even further.
LNG describes natural gas that has been chilled to liquid form which transforms it into a non-pressurized material that’s safe, easy and cost effective to transport and store.
It occupies around 1/600th the volume of natural gas, making it a space efficient alternative, and is colourless, odourless and non-toxic which earns it eco-friendly credentials.
Kevin Frantz, Business Development Director at Eagle LNG, gave a technical breakdown of LNG and its value to the energy sector.
“This is enough storage to run a power plant for 10 days and these are cryogenically based LNG tanks,” Frantz said.
Meanwhile, Director at Caribbean LNG, Calid Hassan said that workers have and are currently receiving training to operate the facility safely and efficiently, stating that he hopes to have the facility fully operational in December.
“We are going to be providing jobs, there is going to be a lot of economic activity…this is new technology, so we are carrying out the required training- both safety and technical.”
US Embassy’s Tabitha Snowbarger spoke about how yesterday’s events were an indication of America’s commitment to the Caribbean.
“Just over a year ago, US Vice President [Kamala] Harris made an announcement of our PACC 2030 commitment to the region to help with the climate crisis, and this is that commitment in action, bringing a US company that has the expertise, that would transfer the skills to Antigua to help the country secure reliable, clean energy,” she explained.
According to the US White House, the US-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030 (PACC 2030) establishes a “framework to elevate US cooperation with Caribbean countries to support climate adaptation and strengthen energy security, while building the resilience of critical infrastructure and local economies to the climate crisis.”
PACC 2030 will serve as the US government’s primary mechanism for regional climate adaptation and resilience and energy cooperation through 2030, working toward meeting the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).