Golar Power's top management got the chance to show Brazil's president Jair Bolsonaro the company's groundbreaking power plant project this week when he attended the inauguration of the 1.5GW Porto de Sergipe I Thermoelectric Plant project.
In a social media post Golar Power quoted Bolsonaro as saying he was happy to participate in the event and stressing the importance of investments by private companies in the country.
The outspoken Brazilian president is shown, with facemasks temporarily pulled down for the cameras, alongside Golar Power chief executive Eduardo Antonello and company chairman Tor Olav Troim, surrounded by officials wearing face coverings.
Bolsonaro, who was accompanied by Brazil's Minister of Mines and Energy Bento Albuquerque, and the governor of Sergipe Belivaldo Chagas, appears to be holding a model of a Golar LNG carrier.
Golar Power said the president also took a look at an LNG-fuelled truck, which the company is starting to introduce into the country. Bolsonaro later tweeted a photo of himself climbing onboard one of the trucks.
Power plant
Sergipe, which started operations earlier this year, is the largest natural gas power plant in Latin America. It is able to meet 15% of the energy demand in northeast Brazil.
The plant is supplied with gas from the 170,000-cbm floating storage and regasification unit Golar Nanook (built 2017).
Alongside wider plans for Golar Power, Troim has previously spoken about breakbulking LNG cargoes from Golar Nanook for local distribution and increasing the use of LNG-fuelled trucks in the country.
Minister Albuquerque said the natural gas used to produce energy at the plant is less polluting compared to diesel and coal.
“The electricity and natural gas sectors have the potential to grow together in a sustainable manner," he said. "I draw your attention that natural gas is one of the main fuels of the energy transition towards a low carbon economy ”
Golar Power, which is a 50-50 joint venture with Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, is developing several power and LNG import terminals involving FSRUs in Brazil.
In a results briefing last week the company said it will take a final investment decision on its planned project at Barcarena, Para in Brazil within four to six months.
The company also plans to finalise plans before the end of this year to site an LNG floating storage unit at Suape and is pursuing another project at Santa Catarina.
Golar Power also said it plans to replicate the its Brazilian business model internationally.
