Texas LNG Export Plants Receive DOE Approval

The U.S. Department of Energy has approved four more LNG export projects in Texas that will add 6.75 billion cubic feet per day of liquefied natural gas export capacity to the United States.

The projects, which are still several years out, include Annova LNG (0.99 Bcf/d), Rio Grande LNG (3.61 Bcf/d), and Texas LNG (0.56 Bcf/d), all located in Brownsville, TX; and Corpus Christi LNG’s Stage III (1.59 Bcf/d) in Corpus Christi, TX.  

The approval authorizes the projects to export LNG by ocean-going vessel to any country with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement requiring national treatment for trade in natural gas, and with which trade is not prohibited by U.S. law or policy.

“The Trump Administration recognizes the importance and increasing role U.S. natural gas has in the global energy landscape,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette. “The export capacity of these four projects alone is enough LNG to supply over half of Europe’s LNG import demand. With today’s authorizations, we are paving the way for more U.S. natural gas exports to bring energy security and prosperity to our allies around the world.”

The United States has been a net exporter of LNG since the first exports left the Gulf Coast in 2016 with approval from the Obama administration. Since then, the United States has emerged as a leading global supplier of LNG, supplying cargoes to more than 35 countries.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts that U.S. natural gas exports will continue to exceed natural gas imports by an average 7.3 billion cubic feet per day in 2020 and 8.9 Bcf/d in 2021.