Freedom LNG applies to export US gas from Mexico

Freedom LNG has submitted a request to US regulators seeking permission to supply US natural gas to a proposed offshore liquefaction and export installation near Matamoros, in the northeastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, maritime news agency Riviera reported on October 9.

The Bravo floating LNG terminal would liquify the natural gas and then re-export the super-chilled fuel to international customers. In its application to the US Department of Energy (DOE) sent in mid-September, Freedom LNG requested permission to ship abroad 307bn cubic feet (8.7bn cubic metres) per year of super-cooled gas.

If approved, Bravo LNG would possess one modular liquefaction train and boast a production capacity of 6mn tonnes per year (tpy). The floating LNG terminal would utilise a 70-km subsea pipeline as well as two floating storage units.

The proposed accompanying marine infrastructure would consist of berthing facilities capable of handling vessels as large as Q-Flex capacity.

Singapore-headquartered LNG Alliance, an affiliate of Texas-based Freedom LNG is developing the project. A 20-year authorisation is being sought from the DOE for both non-Free Trade Agreement countries and Free Trade Agreement countries.

Bravo LNG is the latest LNG export terminal in Mexico to be proposed. LNG Alliance's Amigo LNG facility is currently awaiting a final investment decision (FID) on the proposed 7.8mn tpy floating LNG facility in Guaymas, Sonora on Mexico’s west coast.

Meanwhile, Sempra Infrastructure’s Energia Costa Azul facility in Baja California shipped its first cargo from Phase 1 of the project in July. The project’s first phase boasts a production capacity of 3.25mn tpy.

However, during an inspection following the export of the Mexican project’s first LNG cargo the commissioning phase was extended following the discovery of damage to the project’s refrigerant compressors.

New Fortress Energy’s modular offshore LNG installation near Altamira FAST LNG has been offline since early October following the malfunction of a gas turbine. The facility, which has a nameplate capacity of 1.4mn tpy was commissioned in mid-2024.