US LNG export player Cheniere Energy has made a positive final investment decision for the third liquefaction unit at its Corpus Christi facility in Texas.
Cheniere said in a statement on Tuesday it plans to issue a full notice to proceed to Bechtel Oil, Gas and Chemicals to continue construction which began in late 2017 under limited notice to proceed.
According to Cheniere, this represents the first final investment decision on new liquefaction capacity in the United States since 2015.
The Corpus Christi project is a three-train liquefaction project under construction near Corpus Christi. Each train is expected to have a nominal production capacity of about 4.5 mtpa of LNG.
Cheniere’s wholly owned subsidiary, Cheniere Corpus Christi Holdings, closed on its previously announced amended credit facilities on May 22, and total commitments under the credit facilities have been increased to $6.1 billion.
The amended credit facilities will be used to fund a portion of the costs of developing, constructing, and placing into service Trains 1, 2, and 3 and associated pipeline and other infrastructure at or near the Corpus Christi project, and for related business purposes, Cheniere said in the statement.
The remaining costs of the project are expected to be funded by Cheniere under its amended equity contribution agreement with Corpus Christi Holdings, and from cash flows generated by Trains 1 and 2 after they are placed into service.