Learn more about Hart Energy Conferences
Get our latest conference schedules, updates and insights straight to your inbox.
U.S. energy regulators extended to August 2028 the time U.S. LNG company Freeport LNG has to complete the fourth liquefaction train at its Texas export plant.
The three existing liquefaction trains at Freeport have been shut since June 8 after a pipe explosion. The company expects the plant to return to at least partial service in November.
The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) said in a filing on Oct. 13 that Freeport has not yet started construction of the fourth train.
Freeport said the project was delayed by the replacement of its engineering, procurement and construction contractor and the COVID-19 pandemic, including the pandemic’s effects on the global supply chain and the impact on global LNG demand.
However, Freeport said demand for LNG has rebounded and it has been actively negotiating with potential off-take customers.
Natural gas prices in Europe are up about 111% this year as LNG demand soars after supply disruptions and sanctions linked to Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine.
Freeport said it will take about 48 to 56 months to build the new fourth train, which made it impossible to meet the previous FERC deadline of May 2026.
FERC first approved construction of the fourth train in May 2019, requiring Freeport to finish it by May 2023.
In September 2020, FERC extended the deadline to May 2026.
The three trains already at Freeport can turn about 2.1 Bcf/d of natural gas into LNG.
Freeport's customers include units of Osaka Gas Co, JERA, BP, TotalEnergies and SK E&S. JERA is an alliance between units of Tokyo Electric Power Co Holdings Inc and Chubu Electric Power Co Inc.
Recommended Reading
CERAWeek: Tecpetrol CEO Touts Argentina Conventional, Unconventional Potential
2024-03-28 - Tecpetrol CEO Ricardo Markous touted Argentina’s conventional and unconventional potential saying the country’s oil production would nearly double by 2030 while LNG exports would likely evolve over three phases.
DUG GAS+: Chesapeake in Drill-But-Don’t-Turn-On Mode
2024-03-28 - COO Josh Viets said Chesapeake is cutting costs and ready to take advantage once gas prices rebound.
CERAWeek: Trinidad Energy Minister on LNG Restructuring, Venezuelan Gas Supply
2024-03-28 - Stuart Young, Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Energy, discussed with Hart Energy at CERAWeek by S&P Global, the restructuring of Atlantic LNG, the geopolitical noise around inking deals with U.S.-sanctioned Venezuela and plans to source gas from Venezuela and Suriname.
SilverBow Rejects Kimmeridge’s Latest Offer, ‘Sets the Record Straight’
2024-03-28 - In a letter to SilverBow shareholders, the E&P said Kimmeridge’s offer “substantially undervalues SilverBow” and that Kimmeridge’s own South Texas gas asset values are “overstated.”
Exclusive: Chevron Balancing Low Carbon Intensity, Global Oil, Gas Needs
2024-03-28 - Colin Parfitt, president of midstream at Chevron, discusses how the company continues to grow its traditional oil and gas business while focusing on growing its new energies production, in this Hart Energy Exclusive interview.