U.S. Freeport LNG Export Plant Set to Resume Service After Outage
Freeport LNG in Texas is set to take more feedgas on Wednesday in a sign that the U.S. liquefied natural gas export plant is gradually resuming service after an outage on Tuesday, per LSEG gas flow data cited by Reuters[1]. Freeport LNG, the company owning the plant, told the Texas environmental regulators on Tuesday that the interruption of power feed led to the shutdown of the three liquefaction trains at the export facility. Over the years, Freeport LNG has suffered more outages than other U.S. export facilities because it uses only electric motors for the liquefaction compressors, instead of gas turbines.
GE, which has provided the motors, says[2] that with 675 MW total electric power installed, Freeport LNG is the world's largest all-electric LNG plant built to date. While all-electric driven liquefaction lowers emissions at the project, the plant is more susceptible to storms and other causes of power outages than other U.S. LNG export facilities.
Freeport LNG has three operating liquefaction units, or trains, that have a combined baseload capacity of 1.98 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) and peak capacity of 2.14 Bcf/d. The facility shipped its first LNG cargo in September 2019, and it was the fifth U.S. LNG export terminal to come online in the Lower 48 states.
Shutdowns at Freeport LNG shut in more than 10% of U.S. LNG export capacity, which drives European benchmark gas prices higher and U.S. domestic gas prices lower. That's because with lower volumes of gas for export, more gas is available domestically in the United States.
Early on Wednesday, benchmark U.S. natural gas prices[3] at the Henry Hub jumped by more than 5% to £3.640 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) as reports emerge that feedgas flows to Freeport LNG are recovering and as the early season heat is set to boost demand in the coming weeks.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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