Venture Global LNG raises another $15mn for US projects

OREANDA-NEWS. August 29, 2016.  Venture Global LNG has raised an additional \\$15mn to further develop its two US Gulf coast LNG export projects.

The Washington DC-based company has now raised more than \\$280mn for its proposed Venture Global Plaquemines LNG terminal in southeastern Louisiana and Venture Global Calcasieu Pass LNG facility in southwestern Louisiana.

The construction approval process overseen by the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) can cost \\$100mn-\\$150mn for a complex LNG project.

Venture Global must sign long-term capacity or supply deals to finance its multi-billion-dollar projects. Low oil prices have made it much more difficult for US projects to procure customers, as the economics of US LNG exports are based on wide differentials between domestic gas prices and global oil prices. Most Asian LNG contracts are linked to oil prices.

Shell in February signed a 20-year deal to buy 1mn t/yr of LNG, equivalent to 128mn cf/d (3.6mn m?/d) of gas, from the proposed Calcasieu Pass facility. It is unclear if that deal is binding, but even if it is, it likely would not be enough to finance construction of the project, estimated to cost \\$4bn-\\$4.5bn.

Venture Global has not signed any other deals with customers.

Calcasieu Pass, scheduled to come online July 2019, would have baseload capacity of up to 10mn t/yr and peak capacity of 12.7mn t/yr. It applied in September 2015 for FERC authorization.

The Plaquemines project entered FERC's pre-filing review process in July 2015 and is scheduled to start exporting in 2020. It would have initial baseload capacity of 10mn t/yr and could be expanded to 20mn t/yr.