State to take over control of giant Alaska LNG project

The Alaska Gasline Development Corp, owned by the state of Alaska, said it plans to assume full management of the $45 billion-plus Alaska LNG Project by the end of this year.

The facility to be constructed on the eastern shore of Cook Inlet on the Kenai Peninsula would receive gas via an 800-mile pipeline from the North Slope. The plant is expected to be able to produce about 20 mtpa of LNG from three liquefaction trains.

Recently appointed AGDC president Keith Meyer said that the company and project partners BP, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil are “working together to consider commercial options to improve the project’s ability to compete in the global LNG market.”

“The parties are working collaboratively to transition the project to State leadership. They are also pursuing alternative commercial structure options and concepts that have been successfully used in global LNG projects to reduce the cost of supply of the project. The goal is to have a seamless continuation of the project and maintain project momentum,” Meyer told the AGDC board meeting on Thursday.

Planning for the transition to an AGDC-led Alaska LNG project, which is currently managed by ExxonMobil, is underway with the “target for commencement by the end of October and completion by the end of the year”, Meyer said.

“Once transitioned, the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation will be responsible for managing the project going forward including applying for regulatory approval, securing the commercial commitments from gas sellers, shippers, and buyers necessary to acquire the equity and debt financing that will be required to complete the project, and preparing to start FEED.”

According to Meyer, pre-FEED (front-end engineering and design) work on the LNG project is over 90% complete and pre-FEED deliverables are anticipated by mid-September.

If all goes according to plans, FEED work could begin in 2018 with construction kicking off in 2019, AGDC’s timetable shows.

LNG World News Staff