NorthAmOil: Energy Transfer selects KBR, Technip to build Lake Charles LNG
Energy Transfer has selected a consortium comprising KBR and Technip Energies as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractors for its proposed Lake Charles LNG export project.
The contract was entered into in September, Energy Transfer said in a mid-October monthly filing to the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) updating regulators on activities related to the project.
The project entails converting the existing LNG import facility at Lake Charles to liquefaction and exports. The filing said that the EPC contract will include the fabrication, procurement, transportation, installation, commissioning and startup of the proposed three modular design liquefaction trains and brownfield modifications to the existing LNG storage tanks and marine berths at the site. Each train will have a capacity of 5.5mn tonnes per year (tpy).
The start of activities under the contract is contingent on a final investment decision (FID) being reached on the Lake Charles LNG project. However, there are still a number of regulatory hurdles to be overcome before Energy Transfer can proceed with an FID.
The company has already missed prior FID targets for the project. Further complicating matters, in 2023, the US Department of Energy (DoE) rejected a request from Energy Transfer for a second extension for its permit to export LNG to countries with which the US does not have a free-trade agreement (FTA) from Lake Charles.
The move was made in line with a decision by the administration of US President Joe Biden to tighten up its rules for granting non-FTA export licence extensions. Energy Transfer said at the time that the denial of its extension request had caused at least one potential customer to suspend talks over offtake from Lake Charles.
The company subsequently applied for a new non-FTA export licence later in 2023. However, in early 2024, the Biden administration said it was pausing the issuing of new export licences. As a result, Energy Transfer said in last week’s filing, it is unable to predict the timing or outcome of the new application for exports from Lake Charles LNG.
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