Stranded Gas Tanker in Australia May Lead to Global LNG Price Increase

According to Yahoo News, a loaded liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker is stranded at an export terminal in Australia, potentially disrupting some shipments and adding to supply concerns ahead of the Northern Hemisphere winter. The vessel lost power at a berth at the Australia Pacific LNG facility, on Curtis Island in Queensland, and is currently unable to leave, Origin Energy Ltd. said in a statement. As a result, no other cargoes can be loaded until the situation is resolved. Two cargoes have been deferred from a delivery schedule for the financial year through June, and it's expected that additional shipments will also be impacted, Origin said. LNG prices in north Asia have held near $16 a million British thermal units over the past month, above their five-year seasonal average but about half the level in the previous two years, as Europe built up unprecedented inventories. New outages, adverse weather, or additional curbs on Russian gas could spur more price volatility and exacerbate global LNG supply risks, Bloomberg Intelligence said in a report this month. Australia is one of the world's biggest suppliers of the fuel.