Feds to review liquefied natural gas project
Gulf Coast LNG Export LLC, a Houston-based company, has applied for U.S. Department of Energy permission to export liquefied natural gas from a facility the company has proposed for the Port of Brownsville.
If approved, Gulf Coast would spend billions of dollars for a natural gas liquefaction facility and export terminal and improvements to port infrastructure. The project would create thousands of construction jobs during the building phase and hundreds of long-term jobs once the facility is operational, according to company and port officials. Gulf Coast filed its application with the DOE on Jan. 10 seeking authorization to export natural gas from Brownsville. The port’s board of commissioners has approved a lease option agreement with Gulf Coast for 500 acres of port property.
Gulf Coast and port officials are “highly optimistic” the DOE will grant permission given the significant demand for U.S. liquefied natural gas and “Gulf Coast’s sound business model,” according to a statement from the port. Michael Smith, Gulf Coast’s principal owner and CEO, said the port’s location is ideal for such a project.
“We believe the Port of Brownsville is in a strategic geographic location to assure the success of this project, and we envision this to be a long-term relationship with the port,” he said. “The huge amount of natural gas reserves developed in the United States in recent years, and the significant international demand for LNG, will allow for the development of multiple LNG export terminals in the U.S. The United States is now believed to have more natural gas than it can use in a century.”
Smith is also CEO and founder of Freeport LNG Development L.P., which receives and “regasifies” 2 billion cubic feet of liquid natural gas a day, and is being expanded to add liquefaction and export capability. Gulf Coast has asked DOE for long-term authorization to export 2.8 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas per day from Brownsville over 25 years. If approved by DOE, Gulf Coast will submit an application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for construction of the Brownsville facility. With FERC approval, the Brownsville facility would likely be operational in 2018, according to Gulf Coast.
“This project falls in line with our mission of bringing more quality jobs to the region, and it also allows us to continue to diversify the type of cargo handled at the port, while opening up a new industry for us,” said Eddie Campirano, port director and CEO.
