Reuters: Trump Statement that Europe to Become Massive Buyer of U.S. LNG May Not Pan Out
Posted on Jul 26, 2018
Reuters reports that contrary to recent statements by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker that the EU would build more terminals to handle America’s LNG, and by President Trump that Europe would be a massive buyer of U.S. LNG, the reality is that “three-quarters of Europe’s existing import facilities lie empty while demand for U.S. LNG on the continent remains limited. The most lucrative markets for U.S. LNG are in South and Central America, India and the Far East, with Europe near the bottom of the pile given its relatively low prices and ample supplies of gas via pipelines...
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DOE Releases Rule to Expedite Small-Scale Gas Exports
Posted on Jul 24, 2018
The Hill reports that today the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a final rule under which DOE “will automatically approve gas export applications if they would be at or below 51.75 billion cubic feet of exports per year and do not rise to the level of requiring an environmental review.” The rule also covers LNG exports.
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FERC and PHMSA to Sign MOU to Expedite LNG Facility Permitting
Posted on Jul 24, 2018
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and FERC announced last week that they “have agreed to develop a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that would refine and reduce the permit application review process for proposed LNG facilities. . . . The MOU will clarify each agency’s respective role in the permitting process for potential LNG projects, and implement procedures into the FERC’s authorization process that will leverage PHMSA’s safety expertise to evaluate potential impact to public safety.” The signing of the MOU will be...
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Elba Island In-Service Date Pushed Back to Q4 2018
Posted on Jul 19, 2018
Kinder Morgan announced that the initial in-service date for its liquefaction and LNG export terminal at Elba Island, near Savannah, Ga., has been pushed back one quarter to the fourth quarter of 2018. With an anticipated liquefaction capacity of 2.5 million tonnes per year, final units at the facility are expected to come online by the third quarter of 2019. The project is supported by a 20-year contract with...
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Woodside Petroleum Backs Out of Port Arthur LNG Project
Posted on Jul 19, 2018
Bloomberg reports that Woodside Petroleum Ltd. has announced that it will not participate in the development of Sempra Energy’s proposed Port Arthur LNG liquefaction facility and export terminal in Port Arthur, Texas. Woodside Chief Executive Officer Peter Coleman is quoted as saying, “[i]t got to a point where it got below our investment returns and we said we need to put our money somewhere else.” In February 2016, Woodside entered into a Project Development Agreement with Sempra LNG & Midstream to advance the development of the...
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FERC Streamlining LNG Facility Permitting Process
Posted on Jul 19, 2018
On July 17, 2018, FERC Chairman Kevin McIntyre issued a press release stating that in the last few days FERC has “made truly significant strides in reforming the [LNG facility] permitting process with our federal partners, eliminating duplicative efforts and instituting a streamlined procedure that will significantly reduce our LNG permitting timelines.” McIntyre added that “we expect to have a formalized agreement in place in the coming days.” McIntyre’s statement also noted that recent media reports of FERC letters announcing delays in the processing of LNG terminal applications were...
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DOE Issues Advisory Opinion on LNG Shipments to Guantanamo Bay
Posted on Jul 17, 2018
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has issued an advisory opinion stating that LNG shipments from the United States to the U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay Cuba would not constitute an “export” subject to DOE’s jurisdiction under Natural Gas Act section 3(a).
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