US liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter Venture Global has finalized multiple 20-year supply and purchase agreements as global demand for LNG continues to drive major projects across the US Gulf Coast.
Venture Global said on 28 February that it will supply 0.7 mtpa of LNG to Houston-based Excelerate Energy for a 20-year period from its Plaquemines LNG facility located in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana.
Steven Kobos, president and chief executive of Excelerate, said that the partnership with Venture Global “supports our efforts to enhance energy security and accelerate the energy transition by delivering natural gas to our customers worldwide.”
Kobos called the agreement an important milestone for the company, citing that the partnership allows the company to “offer more flexible and cost-effective products to existing and new customers in downstream markets.”
The deal comes less than a week after Venture Global announced on 23 February that it had signed two 20-year LNG supply and purchase agreements with China Gas.
Under the deals, China Gas will buy 1.0 mtpa of LNG from Plaquemines LNG and another 1.0 mtpa from the CP2 LNG export facility. The CP2 LNG terminal will be adjacent to the company’s Calcasieu Pass LNG facility located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.
“As a major participant in China’s energy market, we are committed to providing reliable and low-carbon LNG to Chinese customers. These two SPAs increase additional volume for our LNG portfolio and strengthen China Gas’s supply ability,” said Liu Minghui, chairman and president of China Gas. “We look forward to working with Venture Global over the coming years to help further reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”
Roof Raising
Construction of the Plaquemines LNG facility is advancing quickly, with Venture Global announcing on 27 February the successful raising of the roof of the first LNG storage tank at the facility.
This major project milestone was completed ahead of schedule and comes 9 months after the project’s final investment decision in May 2022.
According to Venture Global, this is the first tank of four in total for the facility. When operational it will be capable of storing 200,000 m3 of LNG. The roof weighs in at 900 tons and has a diameter of 294 ft. The tank dome was raised in 85 minutes using 0.3 psi of pressure underneath the roof. It was raised from ground level to top of the wall height of 130 ft, the company said.
“Eventually, the tank will have an inner tank made from 9% nickel alloy and outer wall and outer roof made from concrete to provide full containment of the LNG and provide the maximum level of resilience and safety,” the company said.
The $13.2-billion Plaquemines LNG project was the second project for the Virginia-based LNG exporter in Louisiana to be sanctioned. The first, Calcasieu Pass LNG facility located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, shipped its first cargo of LNG in March 2022.
