U.S. LNG company Venture Global LNG received permission on July 8 from federal energy regulators to commission the ninth and final liquefaction block at its Calcasieu Pass LNG export plant in Louisiana.

Venture Global installed 18 modular liquefaction trains configured in nine blocks at Calcasieu. Each block can produce about 1.3 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), or 0.2 Bcf/d, of natural gas.

Analysts estimate the plant cost at about $4.5 billion.

In total, Venture Global has about 70 mtpa of LNG export capacity in operation, construction or development in Louisiana, including the 10-mtpa Calcasieu (operation), 20-mtpa Plaquemines (construction), 20-mtpa Delta (development) and 20-mtpa CP2 (development).

Venture Global was building the $8.5 billion Plaquemines project, which is on track to produce its first LNG in 2024, and plans to start early site work on CP2 early in 2023.

CP2 will be built next to the Calcasieu plant.

Venture Global has entered long-term agreements to sell LNG to units of several companies around the world, including China National Offshore Oil Corp., China Petroleum and Chemical Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc, BP Plc, Edison SpA, Galp Energia SGPS SA and Polish Oil and Gas Co.