• Natural Gas News

    Cheniere Seeks Mid-scale Corpus Christi Expansion

Summary

Mid-scale option replaces original full-scale configuration

by: Dale Lunan

Posted in:

Natural Gas & LNG News, Americas, Corporate, Political, Regulation, Infrastructure, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), Pipelines, News By Country, United States

Cheniere Seeks Mid-scale Corpus Christi Expansion

The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) said July 12 Cheniere Energy had applied for Stage 3 expansion at its Corpus Christi LNG project in Texas, consisting of seven mid-scale liquefaction trains and one LNG storage tank.

Cheniere also filed an application for a 21-mile Stage 3 pipeline to serve the expansion.

In its Stage 3 application, filed with Ferc on June 28, Cheniere said the seven mid-scale trains would have a combined maximum liquefaction capacity of 11.45mn metric tons/year (mt/yr), suggesting maximum capacity for each train of about 1.6mn mt/yr. The storage tank would be rated at 160,000 m3.

Cheniere has been considering the mid-scale option for Stage 3, which would replace the two 4.5mn mt/yr trains envisioned in the original configuration, since last fall. Nameplate capacity of each of the mid-scale trains is expected to average 1.36mn mt/yr, which would boost the nameplate capacity of Stage 3 to 9.5mn mt/yr from 9mn mt/yr, Cheniere said.

Cheniere did not provide a cost estimate for the Stage 3 liquefaction facilities, but did say the Stage 3 pipeline, to carry about 1.5bn ft3/day of feed gas, would cost about $312mn.

Pending Cheniere’s requested date for Ferc approval of June 28, 2019, construction of Stage 3 could begin in 3Q 2019 and commence export service by 2022.