ABSTRACT
On one hand, stakeholders, particularly governments, advocate for increasing the share of natural gas in the energy baskets (due to the virtues of this fuel); however, on the other hand, network-related reasons always pose a serious constraint in achieving this objective—at least at a faster pace. While, undoubtedly, the natural gas industry, regulators, and governments have been working towards these objectives, the natural gas industry simultaneously also has been looking for innovative approaches to reach the consumers in faster, less complicated, and cheaper ways. This endeavor is especially more relevant for regions that must depend upon natural gas to fulfill their requirements. Thus, the question of how to reach customers at the earliest looms large over the horizon. An answer to this question is available by tackling the inflexibility in natural gas transportation and distribution. Is it possible to have a model that puts the last-mile customer first? And can that model overcome the essential need to have pipeline networks for making natural gas available to different segments (i.e., industrial, domestic, and commercial, including transportation fuel)? The downstream value chain of liquefied natural gas addresses these questions. The case study of LNG Express aptly demonstrates this.
