USA: Cheniere to export second Sabine Pass LNG cargo

U.S. LNG player Cheniere is to export its second cargo of liquefied natural gas as the second vessel arrived at the Sabine Pass liquefaction and export facility in Louisiana.

LNG will be loaded and shipped onboard the 162,000 cbm LNG carrier Clean Ocean that is currently docked at the Sabine Pass facility. Cheniere has chartered the LNG tanker from Dynagas under a five-year contract ending in the second quarter of 2020.

Cheniere shipped the first cargo from its Sabine Pass export facility on February 24 to Brazil’s Petrobras. This event marked a new era in global LNG trade as the U.S. is set to become a net exporter of domestically sourced shale gas.

Houston-based Cheniere began producing liquefied natural gas from the Sabine Pass first train in mid-February.

According to Genscape Inc., that has infrared cameras pointed at the export plant, Train 1 started producing chilled gas last week after it ramped down from the first LNG export.

“Feed gas deliveries for March 8, 2016 were 123 MMcf and initial nominations for March 9, 2016 show deliveries at 65 MMcf on the ‘Creole Trail-SPLIQ’ location. When it ramped down, this location averaged only 20 MMcf/d in deliveries,” Genscape said in a note on March 9.

Cheniere plans to construct over time up to six liquefaction trains, which are in various stages of development, at its existing import terminal located along the Sabine Pass River. Each train is expected to have a nominal production capacity of about 4.5 mtpa of LNG.

Commissioning for Train 2 at the Sabine Pass plant is expected to commence in the upcoming months.

LNG World News Staff