Subscriber Note: Platts to add Panama Canal option to LNG freight route from Trinidad to North Asia

Platts is seeking feedback on a proposal to add a Panama Canal navigation option to freight route costs from Trinidad to Japan/ Korea, and to South China/Taiwan. These would be published in Platts LNG Daily and on the Natural Gas Alert page 1025, from June 1 2017.

The standard shipping assumptions will apply to these freight costs. They are as follows; average speed 17 knots, vessel size 155,000-180,000 cu m, fillable volume of 98.5%, fuel oil consumption 100 mt/day of IFO380 CST and a boil-off gas factor of 0.12% when laden and 0.09% when on ballast. Heel will be calculated as 0.09% natural boil off while on ballast, multiplied by the number of days of the return leg plus 36 hours.

Platts currently estimates the cost of transiting via the Panama Canal at $0.18/MMBtu. The voyage from Trinidad to Futtsu will be 22 days and to Guangdong Dapeng will be 27 days.

Basis gas price for boil off and heel will be calculated using the delivered price of LNG. For these 2 voyages it would be the JKM. Cost of charter will be for the entire voyage, accounting for a round-trip and a three-day loading/delivery time, and dividing that cost by the total delivered cargo in MMBtu. The bunker fuel basis for these routes will be Cartagena.

Please send all questions and feedback to wyatt.wong@spglobal.com and lng@platts.com and copy pricemethodology@spglobal.com by May 2 2017. For written comments, please provide a clear indication if comments are not intended for publication by Platts for public viewing. Platts will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.