LECTURE

DOWNSTREAM GAS BUSINESS

Gas Market Analysis and Pricing

The need to identify gas markets early; gas market analysis; netback pricing and interfuel competition; market segments and market opportunities.

Gas-Fired Power Plants

Overview of combined-cycle gas turbine power systems; technology: plant design, fuel efficiency, available packages; project feasibility: capital costs, economics, risk, financing, contracts, markets, capital and operating cost estimating; contracting for fuel supply and power sales; worldwide power trends; examples of recent and planned projects.

Overview of LNG Business

Overview of the role of LNG within the gas chain; technology: LNG plants, liquefaction, ship design and operations, LNG re-gasification units; LNG project feasibility: capital costs, economics, risk, financing, markets; LNG plant design: gas reserves to support a plant, contract prices, contracting; examples of recently completed and planned projects.

Petrochemical Uses for Natural Gas:
Methanol, Ammonia and Gas-to-Liquid Conversion

Use of gas for ammonia and methanol and conversion to liquid fuels; processes for conversion of gas to methanol; markets and project economics; ammonia and fertilizers: source of supply, types of processes, intermediate and end products, markets; project economics; examples of recent and planned projects; gas-to-liquid conversion; available technology; major players; capital and operating costs; economic analysis.

Gas Distribution

Overview of the gas distribution system; classes of customers and load factors; competition from other fuels; sources of gas supply: gas supply contracts, prices, character of gas supply; structure and regulation of local distribution companies (LDCs); marketing demands; design and construction of distribution systems; expansion; operations: load balancing, distribution planning, maintenance, environmental considerations, rate-making policies and practices.

Project Financing:
Commercial Debt Structuring and Case Study

Corporate and project financing; sources of debt and equity financing; public and private sources of capital; multilateral and bilateral sources of financing; risk assessment and mitigation; structuring of financing; preparing the financing plan; negotiating the term sheet; preparing the financing documents; closing. Case Studies - Examples of Project Financing: Qatar Gas Project; Colombia Power Project; U.S. Gas Storage Project.

Industry Regulation, Deregulation and Convergence

The nature of regulation in the energy sector; history and current state of the gas industry deregulation process at the wholesale and retail markets: U.S., Europe and elsewhere; effect of deregulation on the structure of the industry; convergence of gas and power.

Marketing Natural Gas in an 'Open Access' Environment

U.S. market structure; basic deal types and where they are done; the commercial organization; and current issues in U.S. natural gas markets.

Managing Energy Price and Volume Risks: Futures and Hedging

The history of energy price risk management; physical, forward and futures markets; typical futures market transactions; hedging, swaps and options; volume risk management; weather derivatives.