U.S. LNG export pioneer Cheniere Energy Inc. is moving forward with a third liquefaction train at its Corpus Christi LNG export terminal under construction in Texas, the first final investment decision for a new LNG export project since 2015.
The company said May 22 that it plans to issue a full notice to proceed with construction to its contractor Bechtel Oil Gas and Chemicals Inc., which started initial work on the unit in late 2017.
Corpus Christi train 3 would add 4.5 million tonnes per annum, or roughly 0.7 Bcf/d, of LNG export capacity, bringing total capacity at the facility to roughly 2.1 Bcf/d. Cheniere also operates the Sabine Pass LNG export terminal in Louisiana, which has four 0.7-Bcf/d trains in service and a fifth under construction. With the third train at Corpus Christi, Cheniere has 5.6 Bcf/d of sanctioned LNG export capacity.
"Moving forward with the construction of train 3 at Corpus Christi reinforces our position as the leader in U.S. LNG," Cheniere CEO Jack Fusco said in a news release. "We continue to see significant tailwinds in the global LNG market and look forward to delivering additional growth and value to shareholders."
Final investment decisions on new U.S. liquefaction capacity have stalled as buyers have expressed hesitance to sign new long-term agreements that help allow multibillion-dollar LNG projects to receive financing. In the past several months, analysts and developers have begun to point to what they say will be an emerging shortage in the early to mid-2020s if new projects do not move forward.
Cheniere in February announced that its affiliates Corpus Christi Liquefaction LLC and Cheniere Marketing International LLP had signed two contracts with PetroChina International Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of state-run China National Petroleum Corp. The deal was the first long-term U.S. LNG contract signed with China and was widely seen as bringing the company closer to sanctioning train 3 at Corpus Christi.
Corpus Christi train 3 was one of a handful of U.S. LNG export projects that were fully permitted but had not received a final investment decision. Along with a sixth train at Sabine Pass, the Golden Pass, Lake Charles, Magnolia and Delfin LNG export projects have all major regulatory approvals in hand but have not gotten the final go-ahead from their developers.
