(Bloomberg) — Venture Global LNG Inc. has started producing liquefied natural gas at its Plaquemines plant in Louisiana, making the site the eighth gas export facility in the US.
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The Arlington, Virginia-based producer said in a statement that first production was reached on Friday.
The company’s vessel, Venture Bayou, was docked at the facility as of Friday, according to shiptracking data compiled by Bloomberg. The ship initially arrived at the plant in late October. First loading is expected to occur soon after the facility’s startup.
The start of output at Plaquemines, the company’s second facility, comes as the LNG producer plans to file for an initial public offering, Bloomberg News previously reported. Venture Global also faces pending arbitration claims totaling nearly $6 billion from customers including oil majors BP Plc and Shell Plc. The disputes stem from the company not starting its contracts with customers at its Calcasieu Pass facility after beginning operations, and instead selling cargoes to the spot market.
Venture Global announced final investment in the first phase of Plaquemines in May 2022, securing $13.2 billion in project financing. Long-term customers of Plaquemines LNG include Shell, Polish energy firm Orlen SA, China’s Sinopec and CNOOC Ltd., and European utility Electricite de France SA, the parent company of Edison.
Plaquemines, already permitted and under construction, wasn’t affected by President Joe Biden’s decision earlier this year to halt permits for new LNG export projects. Venture Global’s third project, CP2, is stalled under the permitting pause, but President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to lift the ban upon the start of his administration.
–With assistance from Lakenya Finley.
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