Venture Global's Louisiana Plaquemines LNG Export Plant Receives First Natural Gas

(Reuters) — U.S. liquefied natural gas company Venture Global LNG's Plaquemines export plant under construction in Louisiana started to take in natural gas from pipelines on Wednesday, according to data from financial firm LSEG on Thursday.

The United States is already the biggest LNG exporter in the world. Plaquemines is expected to be the next U.S. LNG export plant to enter service later in 2024.

LSEG data showed Plaquemines took in about 0.6 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of gas on Wednesday.

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

Analysts have said they expect Venture Global to complete work on the first 1.8-Bcf/d phase of Plaquemines between 2024-2026 and the second 1.2-Bcf/d phase between 2025-2026.

Officials at Plaquemines were not immediately available for comment.

In March 2023, when Venture Global made a final investment decision (FID) to build phase 2 at Plaquemines, the company said it had secured $7.8 billion of project financing for the second phase, bringing the total phase 1 and 2 investment to around $21 billion.

The seven U.S. LNG export plants already operating can turn about 13.8 Bcf/d of gas into about 104.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG.

Analysts expect U.S. LNG export capacity will rise to around 17.0 Bcf/d of gas or 129.4 MTPA of LNG in mid-2025 as units from the first phase of Plaquemines and Cheniere Energy's LNG.N 1.5-Bcf/d Corpus Christi Stage 3 expansion in Texas enter service staring in late 2024.

Venture Global has said Plaquemines customers include units of ExxonMobil, Chevron, EnBW Energie Baden Wuerttemberg, New Fortress Energy, PETRONAS, China Gas Holdings, Excelerate Energy, Polish Oil and Gas (PGNiG), China Petroleum and Chemical (Sinopec), China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC), Shell and Electricite de France (EDF).

Shell is also one of several customers of Venture Global's roughly 1.6-Bcf/d Calcasieu export plant in Louisiana that is in a dispute with Venture Global over failing to deliver cargoes two years after Calcasieu started producing LNG. Venture Global has said the plant is not yet ready for commercial operations.

Venture Global has about 70 MTPA of LNG export capacity in operation, construction or development in Louisiana, including the 10-MTPA Calcasieu (operation), 20-MTPA Plaquemines (construction), 20-MTPA Delta (development) and 20-MTPA CP2 (development).

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