Houston-based liquefied natural gas export player, Cheniere, filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to add the third jetty to its Sabine Pass LNG facility in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.
The expansion would also include supporting facilities, Cheniere said in its application to site, construct and operate the third marine berth.
Cheniere noted that the Sabine Pass LNG facility currently includes a marine basin with two vessel berths capable of accommodating LNG carriers for import and export operations.
The addition of the third marine berth would help debottleneck marine operations at the Sabine Pass LNG terminal, Cheniere said.
The expansion is anticipated to increase maximum LNG carrier traffic from the currently permitted 400 LNG carriers per year to 580 LNG carriers per year, both for loading and unloading operations.
The third jetty will require a new berth pocket to be dredged southeast of the two existing jetties.
The third jetty will be used to load LNGC for export and is sized to accommodate vessels with capacities up to 180,000 cubic meters and drafts up to 40 feet. The facility will be designed with the capability of loading approximately 12,000 cubic meters per hour of LNG.
Cheniere requested the permission to be issued by January 2020.