As it prepares to begin construction of its $1 billion Midship natural gas pipeline in Oklahoma, Houston’s Cheniere Energy, Inc. announced the first commissioning cargo of LNG has departed its Corpus Christi liquefaction plant in Texas.
It’s the first export of liquefied natural gas from the state and from a greenfield liquefaction operation in the lower 48 states. Cheniere indicated the LNG was loaded on the LNG carrier Maria Energy which is chartered by Cheniere Marketing, LLP.
“Exporting the first commissioning cargo of LNG from Texas demonstrates Cheniere’s ability to deliver projects safely and ahead of schedule, including the first greenfield LNG export facility in the lower 48 states,” said Jack Fusco, Cheniere’s President and CEO. “This milestone further reinforces Cheniere’s position as the leader in U.S. LNG, with a world-scale liquefaction platform that provides significant competitive advantages as we continue to execute on our growth strategy.”
The Corpus Christi liquefaction facility consists of three large-scale LNG production units — or trains — and supporting infrastructure, with an additional seven smaller trains proposed.
The facility’s first train produced first LNG in November and is expected to reach substantial completion in the first quarter of 2019. Train 2 is expected to reach substantial completion in the second half of 2019, and Train 3 in the second half of 2021.
The facility will also feature three LNG storage tanks with capacity of approximately 10.1 billion cubic feet equivalent and two marine berths. The seven smaller trains currently under development would increase the facility’s total expected nominal production capacity to approximately 23 million tonnes per annum (mtpa).
Cheniere Energy, Inc. is the leading producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the United States, reliably providing a clean, secure, and affordable solution to the growing global need for natural gas.
The company’s Midship Pipeline won FERC approval in August and will stretch for 200 miles from Kingfisher county south to the Oklahoma and Texas state line where it will hook into the interstate system. It should be operational by the third quarter of 2019, helping carry about 1,44 billion cubic feet of natural gas a day out of Oklahoma’s STACK and SCOOP fields.