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Freeport Lng News

26 Jan 2024

Freeport LNG Unit Faces Month-long Outage

(File photo: Freeport LNG)

U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) company Freeport LNG said on Friday it expects one of three liquefaction units at its Texas plant will be out of service for about a month after it faced a technical issue during last week's Arctic freeze.This shutdown was the latest in a series of incidents at the plant since it exited an eight-month outage from June 2022 to February 2023 following a fire and explosion.Since April, at least one liquefaction train at the plant has shut or tripped - sometimes several times…

02 Jan 2024

US Was Top LNG Exporter in 2023 as Hit Record Levels

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U.S. liquefied natural gas exports hit monthly and annual record highs in December, tanker tracking data showed, with analysts saying it positioned the United States to leapfrog Qatar and Australia to become the largest exporter of LNG in 2023.The U.S. was the stand out in global LNG supply growth in 2023, said Alex Munton, director of global gas and LNG research at consulting firm Rapidan Energy Group of the rise to 8.6 million metric tons leaving U.S. terminals in December.Qatar was the largest LNG exporter in 2022 and Australia the second-largest that year, U.S. government data showed."U.S.

08 Dec 2023

US LNG Exports Through Panama Canal Shrink, Asia-Europe Spreads Widen

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The number of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels transiting the Panama Canal to Asia halved in November compared with a year ago as Asia prices for the gas this week traded at their steepest premium to European prices in nearly two years.A severe drought has cut vessel traffic through the canal, increasing costs for shippers that take alternative routes or pay extra fees for auctioned slots in Panama. Further restrictions on canal transits likely will put more cargoes on lengthier routes…

08 Nov 2023

FOCUS-How Shipping More US Natural Gas to Europe Helped Fuel CO2 Pollution

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Carbon dioxide emissions from U.S. liquefied natural gas facilities have jumped to 18 million tons per year, up 81% since 2019, adding a volume of greenhouse gas to the atmosphere equivalent to that produced by several big coal plants, according to United States government data.They could more than double to 45 million tons per year by the end of the decade as new facilities, encouraged by soaring overseas demand for the super-cooled fuel, come online, according to company projections provided to the U.S.

12 Sep 2023

US Regains Crown as World's Largest LNG Exporter

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The U.S. regained its crown as the world's largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the first six months of this year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA).US exports of the superchilled gas, particularly to Europe, have jumped in the last year as buyers looked for alternatives to Russian gas imports and to fill Europe's storage inventories, the EIA said.An average 11.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcf/d) of the superchilled gas was exported through June, up 4% from the same period a year-earlier, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) said.The increase in U.S.

13 Mar 2023

FID Reached for Second Phase of Plaquemines LNG Export Project

(Image: Venture Global)

U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) company Venture Global LNG said on Monday that it will go forward with the second phase of its Plaquemines LNG export plant in Louisiana after securing $7.8 billion of financing.Phase two's final investment decision (FID) comes after the first phase was sanctioned in May.Venture Global said that completes about $21 billion in total for Plaquemines, the largest project financing ever done in the space, to build the terminal that would produce about…

07 Mar 2023

Asia Demand to Drive Cheniere's LNG Shipments this Year

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Cheniere Energy expects to ship more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Asia this year, after European customers took the lion's share of its 2022 cargoes, an official said on Monday.The top U.S. exporter of LNG shipped a total of 638 cargoes last year, with slightly over 70% delivered to Europe, Chief Operating Officer Corey Grindal said at the CERAWeek energy conference.Cheniere last year gave the financial go ahead for an expansion of its Corpus Christi, Texas, liquefaction plant and has sought an early environmental review with federal regulators for an expansion at its Sabine Pass…

02 Mar 2023

US LNG Exports Flat Despite Freeport LNG Partial Restart

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U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) were flat last month at 6.84 million tonnes, shipping data showed on Thursday, even as a long-idled Texas processing facility began shipping the fuel during an ongoing restart.Freeport LNG's Texas plant, the second-largest LNG export facility in the United States, began resuming some processing and export operations in February following an eight-month outage caused by a fire.Refinitiv Eikon data showed on Thursday that the plant is on track to pull in about 1.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of natural gas from pipelines…

21 Feb 2023

Fire-damaged Freeport LNG Receives Approval for Partial Restart

(File photo: Freeport LNG)

Freeport LNG, the second largest U.S. liquefied natural gas exporter, said on Tuesday it had received regulatory approval to restart commercial operations at its Texas processing plant.The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the partial restart of two liquefaction trains, two tanks, and one loop and dock each, a filing showed on Tuesday. Restart of a third train, along with a tank, a loop, and a dock, would require additional permission."The second LNG berth and third LNG storage tank are expected to return to service in May," Freeport said.The closely-held U.S.

20 Feb 2023

US LNG Producers Poised to Leapfrog Rivals with Three New Projects

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At least three proposed U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants have likely found enough customers to receive financial approvals this year, according to Reuters calculations, developments that would make the country the world's largest LNG exporter for years to come.After a dearth of plant approvals last decade, developers have secured dozens of long-term contracts to finance new multibillion-dollar LNG plants. The pace of approvals has accelerated as Europe has shifted…

10 Feb 2023

First Vessel Arrives at Freeport LNG Plant Since 2022 Fire

The first liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel arrived on Friday at Freeport LNG's long-idled export plant in Texas since the facility shut in a fire in June last year, according to ship tracking data from Refinitiv.The vessel Kmarin Diamond is operated by a unit of oil major BP, one of Freeport's big customers, according to several vessel tracking services.News of the vessel's arrival helped boost U.S. natural gas futures by over 5% in post-settlement trade on Friday as the second biggest U.S. LNG export plant will consume a lot of gas once it starts production again.The contract had closed at a 25-month low earlier in the week due mostly to mild weather and low heating demand.Freeport has said it would soon start sending gas to one of the plant's three liquefaction trains…

09 Feb 2023

Regulators Green Light Freeport LNG to Return Ship Loading at Texas Plant

(Photo: Freeport LNG)

U.S. federal energy regulators on Thursday approved Freeport LNG's request to return ship loading to service at its long-idled Texas liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant.Freeport, the second biggest U.S. LNG export plant, shut after a fire in June 2022. The energy market expects gas prices to rise once the plant starts producing LNG again.When operating at full power, Freeport can turn about 2.1 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas into LNG each day. That is about 2% of total U.S.

26 Jan 2023

Freeport Gets US OK to Begin Steps to Restart LNG Plant

(Photo: Freeport LNG)

Freeport LNG, the second-biggest U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter, got approval from federal regulators on Thursday to take early steps to restart its fire-idled LNG export plant in Texas.Freeport, however, has not yet sought permission to restart the liquefaction trains that turn natural gas into LNG for export. That resumption of LNG production will have to come in a later request with federal regulators.Energy analysts have said they still expect most of the plant's…

25 Jan 2023

US Coast Guard Says Freeport LNG Hazard Study Addresses Its Requirements

(Photo: Freeport LNG)

The U.S. Coast Guard determined that a Hazard and Operability study for the Freeport LNG plant in Texas addresses its requirements, according to a regulatory filing on Wednesday, bringing the fire-idled facility one step closer to a restart.Freeport LNG may begin three phases for partial operations following approval by the Federal Environmental Regulatory Commission and Department of Transportation.(Reuters - Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

23 Jan 2023

Freeport LNG Says Texas Plant Repairs Completed

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Freeport LNG, the second-largest U.S. liquefied natural gas exporter, on Monday said it had completed repairs to its Texas plant and asked U.S. regulators for permission to take early steps to restart the fire-idled facility.The closely-held liquified natural gas (LNG) company's export facility was knocked offline by a fiery blast on June 8 and barred from resuming production until federal regulators completed an extensive safety review and approved resulting changes.Freeport LNG sought permission to begin introducing LNG into the plant's piping system…

19 Jan 2023

Vessel Seeks Other Port on Expected Freeport LNG Delay

At least one liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel gave up on Freeport LNG's export plant in Texas by Thursday after a growing number of analysts and other sources said the facility would likely not exit its seven-month outage until February or later.The Wilforce vessel, which was expected to reach Freeport in late January, changed its destination to Spain, according to ship tracking data from Refinitiv.Last week, at least two vessels, Elisa Larus and Corcovado LNG, also changed their destinations from Freeport to other ports.Although Freeport LNG on Thursday said that the plant is still on track to restart in the second half of January…

17 Jan 2023

Gas Starts to Flow to Freeport LNG Export Plant

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Freeport LNG's long-shut liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in Texas started receiving pipeline natural gas over the long U.S. Martin Luther King Jr holiday weekend, according to Refinitiv data.U.S. LNG exports have been steadily increasing for years and Freeport, the second biggest U.S. LNG export plant, is one of a number of key facilities for shipments around the world, where demand has soared following Russia's decision to largely cut off piped gas supply to Europe after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.Gas started flowing to Freeport on Jan.

11 Jan 2023

Freeport LNG May Extend Texas Plant Restart to February

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Top U.S. gas exporter, Freeport LNG, is expected to further extend the seven-month-long outage of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in Texas to February, as it awaits regulatory approvals, three sources told Reuters on Wednesday.Accounting for 20% of U.S. LNG exports, resumption of the facility is important to ease the squeeze of global LNG supplies, especially as Europe is rebuilding its gas storage after Russia cut gas exports following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine."There has been no official messaging…

04 Jan 2023

US Poised to Regain Crown as World's Top LNG Exporter

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The United States is on track to become the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) this year - ahead of current market leader Australia - once a fire-idled Texas plant is restarted, according to Reuters data.A June fire sidelined Freeport LNG, the second biggest U.S. export facility, and cut U.S. exports of the fuel by about 2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd). That outage dropped the United States behind top exporter Australia as global demand for the fuel boomed.In 2022, U.S. exports of natural gas as LNG rose 8% to 10.6 bcfd, just shy of Australia's 10.7 bcfd.

20 Dec 2022

Gas Starts to Flow to Freeport LNG Export Plant in Texas

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Freeport LNG’s long-shut liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plant in Texas was on track to receive natural gas on Tuesday, according to data from Refinitiv, a possible sign the plant might meet the company’s projected end-of-the-year return date.The Freeport shutdown added to the squeeze on global gas caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It helped boost prices in Europe and Asia to record highs over the summer, while capping gains in U.S. gas futures by leaving more fuel in…

06 Dec 2022

Vessel Seeks Other Port After Texas Freeport LNG Delay

At least one liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel gave up on Freeport LNG's export plant in Texas after the company last week delayed its planned restart to the end of December, ship tracking data from Refinitiv showed.Some analysts have said they do not expect Freeport to return until January, February or even later because it will likely take federal pipeline safety regulators longer than Freeport thinks to review and approve its restart plan.The Freeport shutdown added to the squeeze on global gas caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It helped boost prices in Europe and Asia to record highs over the summer, while capping gains in U.S.

02 Dec 2022

Freeport Pushes Texas LNG Export Plant Restart to Year End

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Freeport LNG on Friday again delayed the restart of the second-biggest U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility, pushing start-up plans for its Texas plant to the end of the year, pending regulatory approval.In November, the company said it was on track to restart the plant in mid December and get most LNG production back in January with a return to full service in March.Freeport shut the plant on June 8 after an explosion that energy consultants said was the result of human error…

16 Nov 2022

Freeport LNG Restart Delay Causes Vessels to Seek Other Ports

A few liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels have turned away from the Freeport LNG export plant in Texas over the past few days on expectations the plant's restart will be delayed until December or later, according to ship tracking data from Refinitiv.Federal pipeline safety regulators on Tuesday released a heavily redacted consultant's report that blamed inadequate operating and testing procedures, human error and fatigue for the June 8 explosion that shut the Freeport plant.Freeport had not yet submitted a request to resume service to the Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) as of earlier this week.