The Board of Directors of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN) has published the 2012 version of its unified Model LNG Master Sale and Purchase Agreement (MSPA).
“The 2012 version broadens the 2009 MSPA to address a variety of liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading arrangements,” said AIPN President William Lafferrandre, ConocoPhillips.
“The new MSPA is a positive step forward for the growing LNG trading industry and will help promote the development of an LNG secondary market by reducing transactional costs and time involved in trading and hedging cargoes.”
AIPN anticipates that the model MSPA will help the industry establish a more efficient secondary market for LNG that will facilitate trading and arbitrage of LNG cargoes.
“The approval of the MSPA concludes the drafting committee’s work, which lasted more than four years and involved nearly 200 industry representatives,” said AIPN’s Vice President of Model Contracts David Davies.
The effort was led by co-chairs Harry W. Sullivan Jr. and Steven R. Miles, Baker Botts LLP.
The committee held more than 15 meetings and workshops in seven countries on five continents to consult with industry representatives to develop and finalize the MSPA. The drafting committee was a broad representation from the AIPN membership, including members from several of the major LNG sellers, buyers, transporters and traders worldwide as well as from international law firms and other oil and gas companies.
[mappress] LNG World News Staff, July 09, 2012; Image: AIPN