Calcasieu Pass, the seventh U.S. liquefied natural gas export terminal, begins production

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has authorized Venture Global Calcasieu Pass, LLC, (Venture Global)—the developer of the Calcasieu Pass liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal—to commission the first six of nine liquefaction blocks. Each block contains two liquefaction systems called trains. The first authorization, issued in November 2021, was one of the initial steps toward full commercial service.

Calcasieu Pass is a 1.3 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) liquefaction facility located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. Similar to nearby LNG terminals Sabine Pass and Cameron, Calcasieu Pass will export LNG through the Calcasieu Ship Channel located on the Gulf of Mexico. Calcasieu Pass is the seventh U.S. LNG liquefaction export facility to begin producing LNG since 2016.

In addition to 18 mid-scale liquefaction trains, the Calcasieu Pass facility includes an onsite natural gas-fired plant to generate electricity for the facility’s operations, three pre-treatment trains, two LNG storage tanks (with a capacity of 4.4 Bcf each), and two shipping berths capable of loading LNG vessels with carrying capacities of up to 185,000 cubic meters (4 Bcf). The Calcasieu Pass terminal receives its feedgas through Venture Global’s 24-mile, 42-inch diameter TransCameron Pipeline, which has interconnections with the ANR, TETCO, and Bridgeline pipelines.

Since November 2021, Venture Global has received FERC approval to commission Blocks 2–6, most recently on March 30, 2022. Natural gas deliveries to the terminal have increased throughout 2022, averaging approximately 0.7 Bcf/d in April, according to PointLogic. With only three blocks left to authorize for commissioning, and given the pace at which the terminal has received FERC approvals to commission blocks, Calcasieu Pass could reach its full LNG production capacity of 1.3 Bcf/d baseload (1.6 Bcf/d peak) by the third quarter of this year.

On March 1, Calcasieu Pass loaded and shipped its first LNG cargo, often called a commissioning cargo, aboard the tanker Yiannis, chartered by JERA Global Markets, which delivered the LNG to ports in the Netherlands and France. Calcasieu Pass loaded its first cargo 30 months after its final investment decision, which was the shortest amount of time of all the LNG export projects in the United States. As of April 27, Calcasieu Pass has shipped nine cargoes, according to Bloomberg Finance, L.P.

Principal contributor: Katy Fleury