http://www.yokogawa.com/success/

Success Story

Executive Summary

Hibiki LNG Corporation Ltd., a company in the Saibu

Gas Group, operates a large liquefied natural gas

(LNG) terminal in Kitakyushu, a major city in northern

Kyushu. Operational since November 2014, the Hibiki

LNG terminal provides a stable supply of clean-

burning natural gas to households and major industrial

customers in northern Kyushu. As such it is

contributing to the development of this region’s

industries and to the development of a low-carbon

society.

The Hibiki LNG terminal is located on the Hibikinada

coast, and offers ready access to the Sea of Japan

and the East China Sea. The terminal can

accommodate the world’s largest LNG carriers. The

unloaded LNG is re-gasified at the terminal and sent

out via the company’s pipelines to customers in the

Kitakyushu and Fukuoka regions. In addition, a fleet of

LNG tank trucks supplies LNG to satellite terminals

and other gas companies in the Kumamoto and

Sasebo regions.

The Hibiki LNG terminal is an environmentally friendly

comprehensive energy facility, harmonizing people,

nature and society. Office energy is covered by

renewable energies produced on site such as solar,

wind and water power. A 22.4MW solar power station

of the Saibu Gas group is located nearby and

construction of a natural gas-fired thermal power plant

is also planned. Afforestation efforts are underway in

the adjacent Hibiki Acorn Park.

Yokogawa’s CENTUM VP production control system

was selected for the Hibiki LNG Terminal by the

engineering procurement contractor (EPC) in

consideration of a successful install base at another

LNG terminal.

Helping the Hibiki LNG Terminal Safely Provide a Stable

Supply of Natural Gas to Northern Kyushu

Location: Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Japan

Completion: October 2014

Industry: LNG Supply Chain

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Hibiki LNG Terminal

The Challenges and the Solutions

The processes at the Hibiki terminal

Unloading and storage: LNG is unloaded from large-

scale carriers for storage in two insulated 180,000

kiloliter LNG tanks. To maintain the gas in a liquefied

state during the unloading process and when in

storage, it must be kept at minus 162 degrees Celsius.

This requires the constant monitoring of pressure and

the regular release of boil off gas (BOG), which is then

either piped to customers or returned to the LNG

carrier to maintain pressure during the unloading

process.

City gas production: Based on demand, the LNG is

re-gasified by an open-rack vaporizer that uses sea

water as a heat source. The calorific value of the gas

is monitored and adjusted as needed at a special

facility, and the gas then undergoes odorization before

shipment as city gas to end users.

Tanker truck shipment: LNG is loaded onto tanker

trucks at a logistics facility for shipment to satellite

terminals and other locations throughout northern

Kyushu.

24/7/365 monitoring of city gas production and

send-out at the Hibiki LNG Terminal

Safety is a paramount concern at a facility where large

amounts of flammable natural gas are processed and

stored. An additional concern of both industrial and

household customers is the need to avoid interruptions

in supply. Toward this end, the management center at

the Hibiki LNG terminal monitors the status of plant

operations 24/7/365.

Specific processes controlled by CENTUM VP include

the terminal’s unloading, storage, BOG, vaporization,

and calorie adjustment processes. Conditions

throughout the plant are monitored at human interface

stations (HIS) located in the management center.

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Success Story – Helping the Hibiki LNG Terminal Safely Provide a Stable Supply of Natural Gas to Northern Kyushu

Hibiki LNG terminal process overview

24/7/365 monitoring of natural gas production and send-out at the management center