Hoegh LNG may soon become a victim of its own success as available vessels will not cover charter needs if the company lands all its tender targets.
The Oslo-listed owner of floating storage and regasification units has been chasing deals for nine projects and gave further details on a conference call with analysts.
Chief executive Sveinung Stohle said the group remains in the hunt for its fourth and fifth FSRU contracts in India and South America, with final investment decisions expected in the first quarter of 2021, while a decision is expected on a contract for an existing European LNG terminal this year.
The South American contract would last for two or three years initially, Stohle said, adding this is "definitely a live one", and he expected some conclusion to talks by the end of the fourth quarter.
Hoegh LNG said on Thursday it had progressed to the final tender round for a project in the Philippines, as well as finalising deals in Australia and India for FSRUs.
Short of ships?
Stohle said: "We are very confident of delivering on our goal of three new contracts in the near future, and actually it might be that we could find ourselves short of available assets if we have total success with everything we have on the list."
He called this "a very nice problem to have if we get to that".
News of the contract with H-Energy for an FSRU in Jaigarh, India, broke on the Oslo Stock Exchange while the call was in progress.
A vessel could be deployed from as early as the first quarter of 2021.
The charter is for five firm years, with annual options for another five, Stohle said.
This deal was described as "very good news" by the CEO, with talks having gone on for "quite some time."
Ship yet to be selected
"We will use one of three FSRUS in the short-term market; we haven't yet decided which one," Stohle added.
Hoegh LNG has 12 vessels and no newbuildings under construction.
There are 38 FSRUs in the world fleet, with Hoegh LNG's stable of 10 making it the biggest player ahead of Excelerate and Golar LNG.
"We do believe with the strong growth in the market and the need for new FSRUs, the market is moving towards a balance and we think that should be very good not only for our outlook on the contact side, but also for improvement on the rate levels," Stohle said.
