Venture Global begins LNG production at Plaquemines, Louisiana

Venture Global has produced its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the Plaquemines LNG facility in Port Sulphur, Louisiana.

The news comes 30 months after reaching a final investment decision (FID), making the location one of the two fastest greenfield projects to reach first production, along with Venture Global’s first facility, Calcasieu Pass.

Mike Sabel, CEO and Co-founder of Venture Global, said the news will help the US to remain the top exporter of LNG globally.

“Between current and planned facilities, Venture Global is prepared to invest $50bn in energy projects based in the US, which will create jobs, support local economies, strengthen the balance of trade, and unleash much-needed US LNG supply to our allies.”

Once fully developed, Plaquemines LNG will have an export capacity of up to 20 million tonnes per year. It is the US’s eighth LNG export facility and will be one of the world’s largest sites of its type once operating at full capacity.

Plaquemines LNG reached FID for the first phase in May 2022 and for the second phase in March 2023.

The site will produce and export LNG while construction and commissioning continue for the remainder of the project’s 36 trains and associated facilities.

CP2 and Calcasieu Pass

Two other notable Louisiana-based projects Venture Global is heading are CP2 LNG and Calcasieu Pass.

Earlier this year, Venture Global received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for its CP2 LNG facility.

Once operational, Venture Global’s CP2 will have a nameplate capacity of 20 million tonnes per annum. The initial phase capacity of CP2 has already been sold through 20-year sales agreements.

Agreements have been signed with the following: ExxonMobil, Chevron, JERA, New Fortress Energy, INPEX, China Gas, SEFE, and EnBW.

Read more: FERC gives the go ahead of Venture Global’s CP2 LNG facility

Calcasieu Pass is the other and will export at least 10 million tonnes per annum of LNG once fully operational. The location has been producing and exporting LNG since 2022 but has not yet reached its targeted full capacity.

The hold-back has led to several complaints, with the most recent being from Italy’s Edison, which will not receive its LNG deliveries until April 2025. In October, Edison said it had initiated international arbitration for breach of a 2017 contract.

Read more: Venture Global face arbitration over delayed LNG deliveries to Edison

At the time, Edison was told that technical facilities at Calcasieu Pass were the reason for the delays. However, it also noted that Venture Global had already exported 355 cargos to the high-priced spot market and generated more than $20bn in revenues.

Read more: Venture Global launches the first of nine LNG vessels