Gulf LNG gets more time to build liquefied natural gas export plant in Mississippi

REUTERS

U.S. energy regulators approved Gulf LNG's request for five more years until 2029 to build a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant at the site of an existing LNG import plant in Mississippi, according to a federal filing on Thursday.

Gulf LNG is one of more than three dozen LNG export plants under development in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, some of which have been under development for many years. The U.S. is the biggest global LNG exporter.

The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved construction of the Gulf LNG export project in July 2019. That order gave the company until July 2024 to construct the facility and place it into service.

In February, Gulf LNG requested five more years until July 2029 to complete the project. FERC approved that request on Thursday.

Gulf LNG is half-owned by units of U.S. pipeline company Kinder Morgan KMI.N, with the other half owned by units of several investors, including Blackstone BX.N, Warburg Pincus WP.UL, Kelso and Co and Chatham Asset Management, according to the Gulf LNG website.

Construction cranes are seen near the construction site of the Venture Global LNG plant in Plaquemines Parish south of New Orleans, Louisiana on October 17, 2023. The Venture Global LNG plant once operational will be the largest LNG export plant in the United States.
Construction cranes are seen near the construction site of the Venture Global LNG plant in Plaquemines Parish south of New Orleans, Louisiana on October 17, 2023. The Venture Global LNG plant once operational will be the largest LNG export plant in the United States.

Gulf LNG said in its FERC filing that it needed more time to build the plant in part because the "pandemic created challenges for commencing construction and executing international commercial agreements."

Gulf LNG also said in the filing that its involvement in litigation with existing import customers has hampered its ability to execute offtake contracts. The company said it anticipates a resolution of the dispute this year.

Gulf LNG did not name the current LNG offtake buyers. The last LNG imported to Gulf LNG was in 2011, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Kinder Morgan said in a statement it was pleased with FERC's extension, but did not answer questions about the last time Gulf LNG received imports or when the company planned to make a final investment decision.

Gulf LNG proposed to build two liquefaction trains at the site. Together the two trains could turn about 1.4 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of natural gas into roughly 10.9 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG.

One billion cubic feet of natural gas is enough to supply about 5 million U.S. homes for a day.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Gulf LNG gets more time to build Mississippi export plant

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