Golar LNG Partners Updates on Acquisitions
Golar LNG Partners announced that it had entered into an agreement to acquire an equity interest in FLNG Hilli Episeyo last year.
Equivalent to 50% of the two contracted liquefaction trains, out of a total of four, the common units also include a 5% stake in any future incremental earnings generated by the currently uncontracted expansion capacity but do not include exposure to the oil linked component of Hilli's tolling fee.
FLNG Hilli Episeyo arrived in Cameroon in late November. Customs clearance, positioning, mooring hook-up and connection to the riser and umbilicals followed shortly thereafter. In early December a Notice of Readiness was tendered to Perenco and SNH.
A ship-to-ship transfer of cool down LNG with the Golar Bear was completed in mid-December followed by the introduction of feed gas from the onshore processing plant. Full commissioning of the gas treatment systems is now substantially complete and they are running satisfactorily.
Commissioning of the refrigerant trains continued through to February and first LNG production is expected to commence in the coming days. Although Golar reiterates the importance of taking the time it needs to safely commission the vessel, at this time, final commissioning followed by acceptance testing remains on track for mid-April.
Subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including the acceptance of Hilli Episeyo under its contract with Perenco and SNH, closing of the acquisition also remains on track to take place on or before April 30, 2018.
The acquisition is expected to be an accretive transaction that will substantially increase the Partnership's effective revenue backlog. Distributable cash from the acquisition will be used to offset the expected reduction in earnings related to vessels with expiring contracts.
