Gulfstream LNG Development LLC inches closer to the eventual export of LNG with an application filed to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Gulfstream is seeking authorization to export up to four million tons per annum (mtpa) of LNG to Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and non-FTA countries, the company announced February 22 in a press release.

The project will consist of multiple modular trains of less than 1 mtpa each. The liquefaction process will be based on industry-standard units powered by electrical drives.

The filing is a key achievement following the execution of a long-term lease deal in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, securing a prime location to develop its mid-sized greenfield LNG export project.

“We expect to receive FTA export approval later this year and non-FTA approval once our FERC application has progressed,” Gulfstream LNG CEO and founder Vivek Chandra said in the release.

In the interim, the company is progressing with its engineering and project development efforts and discussions with potential equity investors, Chandra said.

FERC request anticipated after initial equity funding round

Gulfstream LNG plans to request the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) commence the pre-filing process after completion of the current initial equity funding round. 

The project will be one of the few greenfield projects to be proposed to FERC since 2019 and initial production is forecasted in less than six years, according to Gulfstream LNG.

The 500-acre LNG site includes over 1.3 km (0.8 miles) of deepwater (~15 meters, 50 feet) Mississippi River frontage and is situated south of New Orleans in Louisiana, a state accounting for over 50% of US LNG exports.

The leased site is exclusively available through a long-term ground lease and joint development agreement with a private company developing an intermodal container port with the Plaquemines Port, Harbor & Terminal District, the company said.

Gulfstream LNG aims to service domestic, regional and international LNG markets via river barges, small ships, bunkering vessels and large tanker exports.