Chart bumps 2019 guidance as LNG business soars

US LNG equipment maker Chart Industries on Thursday reported a net income of $0.9 million for the first quarter of the year, dropping from $5.8 million in the corresponding quarter of 2018. 

The company said it saw a 60 percent order increase during the quarter, logging a total of $461.2 million in orders.

First quarter 2019 orders included a $135.5 million equipment order for Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass 10 million ton per annum LNG export terminal, and a $20.3 million order for E&C equipment for Golar’s Gimi floating LNG vessel.

Additionally, the company said it was notified this week that it won an order for $30 million related to air-cooled heat exchangers for another big LNG project with Bechtel as the EPC.

“Our “big LNG” order pipeline continues to take shape, with increasing order potential in 2019, driven by positive trends in the first quarter from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and several LNG export terminal operators moving toward Final Investment Decisions (FID).  These actions contribute to our increasingly strong pipeline of potential 2019 large LNG related orders of $600 million to $800 million, up from our prior view of $400 to $500 million,” the statement reads.

Chart said its full-year 2019 guidance assumes LNG project revenue in 2019 from Calcasieu and Golar Gimi of $28 million to $30 million, which is subject to project timing.

Sales, inclusive of the Calcasieu Pass and Gimi projects, are expected to be in the range of $1.29 billion to $1.34 billion for the full year of 2019.  This is an increase compared to prior 2019 guidance of $1.26 billion to $1.31 billion