Linde plods into race for Iran LNG projects

Germany’s industrial gases maker Linde has waded into the race for multibillion-dollar petrochemical projects in Iran, including LNG schemes which Total, Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol banished under sanctions. 

Linde Chief Executive Wolfgang Buchele has just returned from a visit to Tehran where he said his company will “definitely” transfer technology to Iran to carry out petrochemical projects once sanctions are lifted on the country.

“We know that Iran’s Ministry of Petroleum is about to make big investments to develop the petrochemical sector. For our part, we are definitely seeking to cooperate with Iranian companies on transfer of technology after the annulment of sanctions,” the ministry’s Shana news agency quoted him as saying.

Buchele reminded that Linde is “one of the biggest players in the global market” in the LNG industry, saying the company is ready to resume its “legitimate presence in Iran as soon as Western sanctions are lifted”, Shana added.

Iranian officials have said there are plans for the “near future” to put massive LNG schemes back on track with the aim of exporting to Europe.

Iran had contracts with the Anglo-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell, Spain’s Repsol and France’s Total to build three LNG plants but they abandoned the projects in 2010.

Iran plans to build a capacity for exports of 40 million metric tons a year of LNG which is super-cooled to minus 162 degrees Celsius for shipment by special tankers.

Officials say LNG is more viable than piped gas for exports for which Iran needs to build a 4,000-km line, requiring massive investment and time.

Buchele, however, said building pipelines was a non-issue.

“Establishing pipelines has never been a problem. It is rather convincing the countries involved which usually takes a lot of time.”

Linde’s chief executive said the price and accessibility of gas are the two key factors in the market which Iran is credited with both.

Liquefied fuel projects in Iran include the Persian LNG with an annual capacity to produce 16.2 million metric tons of gas. The project had been awarded to Shell and Repsol but they abandoned it in 2010.

Total had won another project -- the Pars LNG with a capacity of 10 million tons -- but the company pulled out of it as well.

Iran, however, is carrying on with the construction of Iran LNG, a $3.3 billion project to produce 10.5 million tons of liquefied gas per year, after dropping a Chinese partner.   

Preliminary talks are also being held with the “world’s biggest LNG company” to build a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) plant, head of the National Iranian Gas Export Company (NIGEC) Alireza Kameli said in June.

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