LNG Technology, Processing & Operations

LNG is simply natural gas which has been liquefied for storage and transportation. In LNG form, natural gas is condensed into one 600th of its volume, allowing it to be stored and transported more easily. Liquefaction (by cooling to minus 162 degrees C) occurs in large land based plants and is transported to receiving terminals in LNG carrier vessels.

The need for LNG arises due to the uneven distribution of gas resources and gas markets and the resulting need to transport gas over long distances or over oceans. Although building LNG facilities is capital intensive, transporting LNG by ship over long distances is more economically attractive than transporting compressed natural gas or pipeline gas.

The first LNG export facility came on stream in 1964, although peak shaving plants (which liquefy excess natural gas when supply exceeds demand, for storage and use in peak demand periods) have been in operation for longer. Over this 50 year period, the LNG industry has undergone extensive development and during the last decade, LNG trading has expanded rapidly and now accounts for more than one third of the global gas trade.

This course provides insight into the LNG industry and covers technology, production and operation of LNG facilities at a time when LNG has expanded to become a significant proportion of global energy trade and, with gas being unlocked from shale and coal seam deposits, is poised to assume even greater importance.