Corpus Christi LNG signs deals with Kinder Morgan

: Natural gas
14/12/10

Cheniere Energy has signed 15-year pipeline capacity agreements with Kinder Morgan and a multi-year gas storage agreement for the proposed Corpus Christi LNG export project in south Texas.

Kinder Morgan will provide 531mn cf/d (15mn m³/d) of firm transportation capacity and 3 Bcf of storage capacity.

The storage capacity and a combined transportation capacity of 241mn cf/d would come from Kinder Morgan's South Texas intrastate pipeline system. The intrastate capacity would come from the Kinder Morgan Texas Pipeline and the Kinder Morgan Tejas Pipeline.

The remaining transportation capacity of 290mn cf/d would come from the interstate Tennessee Gas Pipeline (TGP) system. TGP was built to send Gulf coast gas to the US northeast but is increasingly used to send Marcellus gas south. Kinder Morgan plans to spend about $187mn to expand the TGP system to provide the additional transportation service from various Zone 1 receipt points near its Station 87 Pool in Portland, Tennessee.

The total transportation services that Kinder Morgan would provide for Cheniere's Corpus Christi project could be increased to 773mn cf/d upon completion of specified conditions in the Kinder Morgan Texas Pipeline agreement.

Kinder Morgan plans to build the necessary facilities in time to provide the services for the start-up of the LNG export project, which is expected in 2018.

Cheniere is unusual among developers of US LNG exports projects in that it will bring all the necessary gas to its facilities and will sell LNG to customers in addition to liquefaction capacity. Most other US projects will only sell liquefaction capacity, and customers will be responsible for procuring gas and pipeline transportation services.

Cheniere's Sabine Pass LNG export facility in Louisiana is on track to start commercial deliveries in February 2016.

Corpus Christi would be the first major LNG export terminal in the contiguous US to be built at a greenfield site. Most other US LNG export projects in advanced stages of development would be built at the sites of existing LNG import facilities, presumably allowing the proponents to save hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure costs.

Corpus Christi has an estimated cost of $14.5bn for three liquefaction trains with a combined peak capacity of 15mn t/yr, equivalent to 2.1 Bcf/d (59mn m³/d) of gas. Cheniere expects to secure all necessary regulatory approvals and make a positive final investment decision on Corpus Christi in time to start construction by early 2015.

Cheniere has signed 20-year deals with various customers for Corpus Christi liquefaction capacity totaling 7.26mn t/yr for trains 1 and 2. It has only signed a deal for 390,000 t/yr of capacity from train 3 and has said that train could come on line as early as 2019 if enough capacity is sold.

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26/04/15

Iran widens shipping threat beyond Hormuz

Dubai, 15 April (Argus) — Iran has warned it could disrupt shipping across key regional waterways, including the Red Sea, in response to US restrictions on vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports. It marks a broadening of Tehran's maritime threat beyond the strait of Hormuz, where vessel traffic has already slowed sharply since the conflict between the US and Iran started in late February. Ali Abdollahi, head of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Military Headquarters — the country's highest operational military command — said continued US actions targeting Iranian ports and tankers would "constitute a prelude to a violation of the ceasefire" between Washington and Tehran. He warned Iran would respond by preventing "any exports or imports to continue in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman, and the Red Sea" if the US blockade persists. The US began a naval blockade on vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports on Monday. The US military said no vessels breached the restrictions in the first 24 hours. It said several ships had been instructed to turn around and return to Iranian ports. Vessels calling at or leaving non-Iranian ports are not subject to the measures. At least seven ships transited the strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours with AIS signals active, according to ship-tracking data from Kpler and MarineTraffic. Despite the escalation in rhetoric, both sides have signalled scope for renewed diplomacy. US president Donald Trump told ABC News that the conflict could end "very soon". Vice-president JD Vance, who led the US delegation in recent talks, said he remained positive about the trajectory of negotiations following discussions in Islamabad that ended without a breakthrough. The statements have raised expectations that US and Iranian officials could return to Pakistan, or another venue, for further talks. Washington has continued to portray regional instability as driven by Tehran and its allies. Speaking at the UN on 14 April, US representative Jennifer Locetta said Iran continues to enable destabilising activity across the region, including support for Yemen's Houthi movement. The US has accused the Houthis of launching repeated missile and drone attacks on shipping in and around the Red Sea and has called for tighter compliance with UN inspection mechanisms for vessels bound for Houthi-controlled ports. By Bachar Halabi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Iran war prompts IMF to cut growth outlook

26/04/14

Iran war prompts IMF to cut growth outlook

Washington, 14 April (Argus) — The energy supply shock sparked by the US-Israel war against Iran and the uncertainty over the conflict's duration have forced the IMF to change its quarterly outlook for global economy by outlining scenarios that range from bad to worse. Even with a fragile truce in place through 21 April, "some damage is already done, and the downside risks remain elevated," IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas said on Tuesday. "The shock's ultimate magnitude will depend on the conflict's duration and scale — and how quickly energy production and shipment normalize once hostilities end." The IMF's World Economic Outlook pegs global growth at 3.1pc in 2026, a downgrade of 0.2 percentage points from its January outlook. The IMF describes this as a "reference forecast", rather than a baseline case, highlighting the unpredictable trajectory of the war. In the reference scenario, disruptions from the shut-in of Mideast Gulf production and the closure of the strait of Hormuz would fade by July. A longer shutdown of the strait of Hormuz and additional damage to Mideast Gulf upstream and refining capacity would result in global growth slowing to 2.5pc this year. In this adverse scenario, oil and gas prices would remain above pre-war levels well into 2027. The most severe scenario analyzed by the IMF, in which oil and gas supply disruption lasts into 2027, would reduce growth this year to 2pc, the IMF said. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

BP to simplify organisational structure

26/04/14

BP to simplify organisational structure

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US starts enforcing blockade of Hormuz: Trump

26/04/13

US starts enforcing blockade of Hormuz: Trump

Washington, 13 April (Argus) — The US set out on Monday to intercept ships leaving Iranian ports or heading to Iran through the strait of Hormuz, ostensibly to increase US leverage in peace negotiations with Tehran. The blockade , which went into effect at 10am ET (14:00 GMT) Monday, ought to force Tehran to make a deal with the US and reopen the strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday. Trump — as he has done on many occasions since the war with Iran started on 28 February — claimed that Iran in fact became more pliable following his decision to enforce a blockade. "We've been called this morning by the right people, the appropriate people, and they want to work a deal," he said, without offering any details. Senior US and Iranian officials failed to make a breakthrough in marathon talks over the weekend in Islamabad, Pakistan. From the US' perspective, the key stumbling block is Iran's nuclear program. "Iran will not have a nuclear weapon, and we agreed to a lot of things, but they didn't agree to that," Trump said. "And I think they will agree to it. I'm almost sure of it. In fact, I am sure of it. If they don't agree, there's no deal, there'll never be a deal." Iran has warned it could target ports across the Mideast Gulf if its own facilities are attacked as a result of US naval operations, describing US plans to impose a blockade on Iranian ports as "piracy". Tankers from neutral countries that are currently loading Iranian cargo have been granted a grace period to get through the US' announced blockade, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations. As much as 36pc of all tanker traffic transiting the strait of Hormuz since the start of the US–Iran war either departed or were bound for Iranian ports. In Trump's words, Tehran's ability to prevent non-Iranian trade from transiting Hormuz is detrimental — "They're really blackmailing the world. We're not going to let that happen." — but also not affecting the US very much. "We don't use this trade," Trump said. "We have our own oil and gas much more than we need. We have more oil and gas than Saudi Arabia." Trump earlier on Monday posted on his social media platform that "34 Ships went through the Strait of Hormuz yesterday, which is by far the highest number since this foolish closure began." Trump told reporters that other countries have offered to help enforce the blockade even though "we don't need other countries". He said he would announce on Tuesday which countries will join the US in enforcing the blockade. The UK and France said on Monday they would co-host a summit with more than 40 countries participating to discuss how to safeguard shipping through Hormuz, adding that their participation will begin "when the conflict ends". Trump, who last month said he expected the war to end within "four to six weeks", said on Monday that he would stick to his original timeline. "Right now there's no fighting. Right now we have a blockade. They're doing no business." The US and Iran agreed to a ceasefire through 21 April to allow for diplomatic talks to hash out a deal. Iran's military capacity has been obliterated, Trump said. "Their navy is gone, their air force is gone, their anti aircraft is gone, their radar is gone, and their leaders are gone." But in a social media post Monday morning, Trump acknowledged that Iran has retained its fleet of speedboats, warning that "If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED." By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

NY weighs new yardstick to set climate goals

26/04/13

NY weighs new yardstick to set climate goals

New York, 13 April (Argus) — New York governor Kathy Hochul (D) is asking state lawmakers for more time to reduce emissions. Potentially more important is how the state actually measures them. The state's leaders, at loggerheads over climate policy and other issues, have already blown past a deadline to agree to a new budget. Hochul frustrated progressives by pushing for changes to the state's 2019 climate law, which not only mandates deep emissions reductions but also includes a bespoke system for tracking climate impacts that discourages natural gas and some biofuels. New York requires a 40pc reduction in economy-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030 from 1990 levels and an 85pc drop by 2050. But the state's unique emissions-accounting method effectively requires deeper cuts to emissions than targets suggest. Environmentalists say this system will speed New York's transition to renewables and leave the state less exposed to future oil supply shocks. 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After environmental groups sued, a state court directed the Hochul administration to release carbon market regulations . Hochul has since been more direct about her concerns and called for punting the rollout of the market to 2030. Environmentalists resent Hochul's argument that New York's targets are infeasible when her administration is slow-walking the rollout of a plan to achieve them. But they recognize the power governors wield in New York's mostly closed-door budget process. One potential compromise that has been discussed among advocates is implementing a carbon market with more typical emissions-accounting rules, while preserving the 20-year warming timeline for other state programs. This could address cost concerns while containing the backlash from climate advocates. It could also leave the door open for linkage with other carbon markets, which would be exceedingly difficult without aligning rules across different programs. Without changes, biofuel supporters also fear that a state "clean transportation standard" that regulators are studying could cut out many of the fuels rewarded by California. Lawmakers likewise have expressed resistance to sweeping changes. Senator Environmental Conservation Committee chair Pete Harckham (D), an influential voice on climate, has signaled some openness, however, to "modest adjustments". "We're committed to working with the governor to find reasonable solutions here, but in my humble opinion, a complete rollback of the state's climate law is untenable," Harckham said last week. By Cole Martin and Ida Balakrishna Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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