The opening of the Jurong Island terminal in May 2013 has made the LNG industry a "major economic driver" for the Singaporean economy and is a game-changer not only for industry players but the legal community, the firm's senior associate Gordon Inkson said this week.

Singapore's rise has been punctuated by the listing of Russian energy giant Gazprom JSC global depository receipts on the Singapore Exchange (SGX).

Inkson said that, with a $US99 billion ($A115.5 billion) market capitalisation, Gazprom's recent listing in June had energised Singapore's mineral, oil and gas sector - and was heralded by SGX CEO Magnus Bocker as "an important event for SGX".

Andrew Kruglov, deputy chairman of the Gazprom management committee and head of its department for finance and economics, further hailed the move as "a key milestone in Gazprom's history and further demonstrates the importance of Singapore, and the Asia-Pacific region, for Gazprom's business and future strategy".

At the end of August, Singapore LNG Corporation (SLNG) awarded Samsung C&T rights to the $542 million engineering, procurement and construction project to expand the country's first LNG terminal, with a completion date set for 2018.

This new project - which initiated phase three of Singapore's ambitious LNG storage extension program - aims to expand the terminal's send-out capacity from 6 million tonnes per annum to 11MMtpa by adding a fourth LNG storage tank and additional regasification facilities to the existing terminal.

SLNG said that, with a capacity of 260,000 cubic metres, the new storage tank will be the fourth largest in the world and have the ability to fully store cargo from a Q-Max carrier.

"This most recent EPC project continues the nation's already significant efforts to boost its LNG profile by investing in its infrastructure and technology," Inkson said.

"Breaking into the LNG market with the terminal's opening in May 2013, the well-established hub has since received 32 LNG vessels delivering more than 2.06 million metric tonnes of LNG to Singapore."

In a further attempt to move away from oil to gas and reduce emissions, the Singaporean government has announced plans to supply LNG to fuel ships by 2020, starting with a pilot program in early 2017 which will involve funding up to six LNG-fuelled vessels at up to $2 million per vessel.

Singapore Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew confirmed the government's plans and repeated the commitment to making Singapore an LNG hub when addressing the Singapore International Bunkering Conference on October 15.

Inkson warned, however, that a common point of contention in LNG sale agreements was the delivery point. That's the point where parties often fail to agree at the original time of contracting -whether delivery would happen at the loading terminal or the receiving facility.

In a briefing this week, Inkson said it was critical to settle this at the start of the contract process, as the question of delivery had an important bearing not only on the apportionment of risk during transit and in ensuring that facilities at the receiving terminal may be adequate, but also to the question of title to the cargo.

The degree of cover provided for by each parties' insurance also needed to be considered, specifically ensuring there was adequate cover in place. This cover would come into effect in the event of an accident caused by the delivery vessel's negligence, or adverse weather conditions, which was often an issue in some of the more remote production areas.

"The buyer in an LNG sale agreement should also exercise caution when entering any agreement to on-sell the LNG, paying particular attention to their exposure to liability for failing to deliver the LNG, despite the problem being outside of their control. In order to avoid this situation, the buyer should consider including express provision for the recovery of lost profits from the subsequent sale of the LNG directly from the seller," Inkson said.

Provisions regarding dispute resolution and jurisdiction - known as "midnight clauses" - are often added on at the last minute to the LNG sale and purchase agreement, which is where parties or deals often come unstuck.

"Commercial parties, particularly those involved in the energy trade, generally prefer to think of the rewards of partnerships rather than the risks connected to its breakdown," Inkson said.

"Accordingly, parties to an LNG agreement are often surprised at the effects of these clauses, and commonly complain that what is recorded in the agreement does not seem to match their original expectations."