US Dept Approves More LNG Exports

The US Department of Energy (DoE) said May 2 it had authorised long-term exports of LNG from Tellurian’s Driftwood LNG terminal in Louisiana and Sempra Energy’s Port Arthur LNG facility in Texas to countries that do not have a free trade agreement with the US.

Under the DoE orders, Driftwood LNG has non-FTA approval to export up to 3.88bn ft³/day of natural gas as LNG, while Port Arthur has approval to export up to 1.91bn ft³/day to non-FTA countries. Both projects received final approvals from the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) on April 18.

“The Driftwood and Port Arthur exports will ensure that US LNG continues to impact our friends and allies across the globe,” US secretary of energy, Rick Perry, said in a statement. “The US is the world’s leading producer of natural gas, and our exports provide a reliable, diverse, and secure source of energy to countries looking to diversify their energy portfolios.”

Tellurian’s Driftwood project includes a 27.6mn mt/yr liquefaction facility near Lake Charles, Louisiana and the 96-mile Driftwood pipeline, while Sempra Energy’s Port Arthur projects consists of a 13.5mn mt/yr liquefaction facility in Port Arthur, Texas and two pipelines in Louisiana and Texas to deliver gas to the terminal.

Perry had been meeting senior European Union politicans and energy executives in Brussels as part of a drive to sell US LNG to Europe, and he signed the authorisations there.