With the vessel already in service on site in Brazil, the new agreement is set to begin on 1 January 2024
Under the agreement, Excelerate said it will continue to deploy its FSRU Sequoia for regasification services at the Bahia regasification terminal in Salvador, Bahia.
The company has provided regasification services in Brazil at Petrobras’ LNG import terminals since 2012. In addition to Sequoia, Excelerate’s FSRU Experience is also positioned in Brazil.
"Maintaining a continued presence in the Brazilian market is a fundamental part of Excelerate’s strategic position as a reliable backstop to the country’s energy system for which intermittent renewable energy contributes approximately 85%," Excelerate said.
Excelerate took delivery of Sequoia from South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in June 2020, expanding its fleet to 10 FSRUs – one of the largest in the world – after completing the transition of its entire fleet of FSRUs to its wholly owned ship management arm, Excelerate Technical Management.
In September 2022, Excelerate and Maran Gas Maritime signed a five-year bareboat charter agreement for the FSRU.
In March 2023, Excelerate said it had arranged a US$350M extension on an existing loan and an additional US$250M in new loans to enable the purchase of the FSRU Sequoia from Maran Gas under a contract option. The transaction was finalised in April 2023, with Excelerate saying it acquired the FSRU at "a price well below its current market value" of US$265M. Excelerate floated an initial public offering in April 2022 that saw it raise more than US$400M in share value.
The loan facilities the company has arranged to purchase Sequoia both mature in March 2027. Sequoia, with a storage capacity of 173,400 m3, is capable of operating as both an FSRU and a fully tradeable LNG carrier. Houston, Texas-headquartered Excelerate is controlled by American billionaire George Kaiser.
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