Jacksonville, FL – Carib Energy LLC has been granted a 20-year, small-scale US Department of Energy (DOE) export license for the supply, transportation and distribution of US-sourced liquefied natural gas (LNG) into several Non-Free Trade Agreement (NTFA) countries in the Caribbean, and Central and South America.

The licensing permits Carib Energy, a subsidiary of the Crowley Maritime Corp., to export 14.6 billion cubic feet (BCF) of LNG – roughly the equivalent of 480,000 gallons – per day via 10,700 gallon ISO-certified tanks to the specified regions.

Earlier in the year, the company was awarded a multi-year contract to supply containerized, US-sourced LNG to two Coca-Cola bottlers in Puerto Rico.

That contract included supplying and transporting the LNG to the two plants in Cayey and Cidra, Puerto Rico.

The LNG “provides both facilities with substantially lowered emissions, an alternative to their current diesel fuel source, and an uninterrupted fuel supply due to the abundance and availability of US-sourced LNG,” the company said.

The transportation of the LNG for all of the company’s new projects is being managed by Crowley’s in-house logistics team, which coordinates shipment of the 40-foot bulk liquid tank containers carrying the LNG from the company’s shipping terminal at the Port of Jacksonville, Florida.

The containers containing the LNG are ISO-certified and approved by the US Department of Transportation to carry approximately 10,000 gallons of the product.

LNG is natural gas that is cooled to -260° Fahrenheit until it becomes a liquid and then stored at essentially atmospheric pressure.

Converting natural gas to LNG, a process that reduces its volume by about 600 times allows it to be transported. Once delivered to its destination, the LNG is warmed back into its original gaseous state so that it can be used just like existing natural gas supplies.

When returned to its gaseous state, LNG is used across the residential, commercial and industrial sectors for purposes as diverse as heating and cooling homes, cooking, generating electricity and manufacturing paper, metal, glass and other materials.

LNG is not stored under pressure and it is not explosive. LNG vapors – methane – mixed with air are not explosive in an unconfined environment. When exposed to the environment, LNG rapidly evaporates, leaving no residue on water or soil.

Founded in 1892 in San Francisco, the Crowley Maritime Corp. entered the LNG market by acquiring Florida-based Carib Energy LLC last year.

Shortly thereafter, Crowley created a specialized LNG services group to offer supply, transportation, and distribution of LNG services utilizing the certified tank containers.

09/15/2014