US LNG export project developer Venture Global LNG said Thursday it has entered into a $220 million bridge loan facility with Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc. and associated lenders.
The proceeds will be used to finalize engineering work and commence site construction activity for the company’s 10 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) Calcasieu Pass LNG export project upon receipt of regulatory approvals and prior to a formal FID.
“This $220 million, along with the $635 million of equity capital we have raised to date, allows us to finalize advanced engineering, purchase equipment, and commence construction activities at our Calcasieu Pass facility in the near term, reducing schedule risk for our offtake customers,” Co-CEOs Mike Sabel and Bob Pender jointly said.
The Calcasieu Pass facility will employ a process solution from GE Oil & Gas, part of Baker Hughes, a GE company (BHGE) and will utilize mid-scale, modular, factory-fabricated liquefaction trains.
Venture Global LNG also announced it has selected Kiewit as the contractor to build its Calcasieu Pass LNG export plant.
Calcasieu Pass LNG’s selected EPC contractor, Kiewit, will commence construction of the facility following the receipt of all required regulatory approvals, including the final order from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
This order is currently scheduled to be issued no later than January 22, 2019, according to Venture Global LNG.
Calcasieu Pass LNG has previously executed binding 20-year offtake agreements with Shell, BP, Edison, Galp, Repsol and PGNiG.
Venture Global LNG is also developing the 20 MTPA Plaquemines LNG export facility in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, which has executed its first binding 20-year offtake agreement with PGNiG.
Venture Global LNG says it expects to take formal final investment decisions on both its Calcasieu Pass and Plaquemines LNG projects in 2019.