LNG export project developer Delfin Midstream has taken a final investment decision (FID) for the first floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) vessel of the Delfin LNG project under development in Louisiana, and offshore in the Gulf of America.
Delfin FLNG 1 will be the first floating liquefaction facility in the US and largest FLNG project globally, with an expected export capacity of 4.4 million tonnes of LNG per year.
The vessel is scheduled to begin LNG production in 2030, and the company is targeting FIDs for two more FLNG vessels over the coming year.
Concurrent with the FID – whose timeline slipped slightly, based on – a group of investors led by Global Infrastructure Partners, a part of BlackRock, together with existing Delfin investors Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL), energy and commodities trader Vitol, and credit asset manager Diameter Capital Partners, have agreed to invest in the first phase of the critical energy infrastructure project. No details of the investment were disclosed.
Dudley Poston, Delfin CEO, said securing FID for its first FLNG vessel is a milestone not only for Delfin, but also for global energy security.
©Delfin Midstream
The vessel uses gas turbine driven technology and air-cooling for both liquefaction, process and utility cooling duties. The FLNG design is a liquefier concept that receives pipeline quality feedgas and is therefore not producing from a reservoir like an LNG FPSO. As such the design is significantly less complex and lower in costs.
Jotaro Tamura, President and CEO of MOL, said it began its investment in Delfin in 2023 and subsequently seen the FLNG project progress rapidly. It will leverage its “significant expertise” in offshore floating facilities.
Ben Marshall, President & CEO of Vitol Americas, was confident Delfin FLNG 1 will deliver reliable, cost-competitive American energy to global markets.
Construction contracts have been executed with partners including Samsung Heavy Industries Co. and Black & Veatch.
US LNG exports are expected to make up as dependence increases during the current Middle East crisis, according to a report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
The think tank believes the US could overtake Norway to become Europe’s largest gas supplier in 2026, and supply 80% of European LNG imports by 2028.
