The Lake Charles LNG project, led by Energy Transfer LP and Shell US LNG LLC, has issued an Invitation to Tender (ITT) on May 3 to U.S. and international consortia to bid for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract to convert Energy Transfer’s existing LNG import facility in Lake Charles, Louisiana to a proposed large-scale LNG export project.

The ITT follows the signing of the project framework agreement between Shell and Energy Transfer in March, outlining the commercial terms and pathway to progress development of a proposed 16.45 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) LNG export project in Lake Charles toward a potential final investment decision (FID).

The Lake Charles project is a 50/50 venture between Energy Transfer and Shell. The project, if sanctioned through an affirmative FID, would convert Energy Transfer’s existing Lake Charles LNG import and regasification terminal to an LNG export facility with a liquefaction capacity of 16.45 mtpa to export U.S. natural gas to global customers. The project is fully permitted, uses existing infrastructure and benefits from abundant natural gas supply and proximity to major pipeline infrastructure, including Energy Transfer’s vast pipeline network.