Plaquemines LNG site to start commercial ops 31 Oct

: Natural gas
26/10/02

Venture Global is planning to begin providing cargoes to long-term customers of Plaquemines LNG's first phase on 31 October, according to a filing with the US Department of Energy (DOE).

The filing on 1 October came on the same day that Venture Global formally asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to formally place in service the 27.2mn t/yr export terminal in southeast Louisiana. Once approved, Venture Global can activate long-term offtake contracts with Orlen, Sinopec, Cnooc, Shell and EDF.

Venture Global said it was in the final stages of commissioning the pretreatment and power island facilities for phase 1 in August.

Venture Global also reaffirmed it intends to begin deliveries to its phase 2 customers in mid-2027. Those include ExxonMobil, Chevron, EnBW, New Fortress Energy, China Gas, Petronas and Excelerate.

The designation of commercial service does not alter the level of production but rather who receives it. Plaquemines LNG exported 25.7mn t in the 12 months ended on 30 September, or 94pc of its authorized peak capacity, according to Kpler ship-tracking data. Venture Global sold these commissioning cargoes itself on the spot market or under short-term contracts, with customers including QatarEnergy.

When phase 1 begins commercial service, its long-term customers will receive production from the terminal's first 24 trains, which have a combined nameplate capacity of 13.3mn t/yr. The second phase, consisting of 12 trains, brings the terminal's nameplate capacity to 20mn t/yr. Plaquemines' overall peak 27.2mn t/yr capacity allows Venture Global to produce and sell the excess 7.2mn t/yr of production.

By Tray Swanson

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