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17 min ago 2 min read
Multinational TotalEnergies has shipped the first cargo from ECA LNG Phase 1 to Asia.
The LNG export terminal is currently under commissioning on Mexico’s Pacific Coast, in Baja California.
TotalEnergies, which holds a 16.6% stake in the project alongside operator Sempra Infrastructure, will offtake 1.7 million tonnes per annum of LNG for 20 years from the start of commercial operations. TotalEnergies will be the sole offtaker of LNG during the ramp-up phase.
ECA LNG Phase 1 consists of a single-train liquefaction facility with a nameplate LNG capacity of 3.25 mtpa, supplied with US feed gas sourced from the Permian Basin in Texas and New Mexico. Phase 1 has definitive 20-year sale and purchase agreements with TotalEnergies and Mitsui & Co., which will receive 0.8 mtpa.
It has leveraged synergies with the existing regasification plant to optimise construction costs. A second larger phase is also under development at the same site.
ECA LNG claims its strategic position enables US natural gas to be exported to Asia and other Pacific Basin markets via the shortest maritime route, reducing transportation times and costs.
The project is expected to reach substantial completion this summer, with long-term LNG sales agreements taking effect shortly thereafter as the facility enters commercial operations.
Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies, said the start-up of ECA LNG strengthens its integrated LNG portfolio in North America.
Justin Bird, CEO of Sempra Infrastructure, said at a time of increased uncertainty in the global LNG trade, ECA LNG provides a new and reliable source of natural gas from North America’s Pacific Coast to global customers.
