The Republic of Congo has now officially joined the group of LNG exporting countries with the production start-up at Eni’s Congo LNG project where the first LNG cargo is being prepared to sail to Piombino’s regasification terminal, in Italy, in the coming days.
Eni announced the milestone on February 27, 2024, following the start of the commissioning phase and the introduction of the first gas into Tango floating LNG (FLNG) facility on December 28, 2023.
The start-up of LNG production in Congo was celebrated by the President of the Republic of the Congo Denis Sassou-N’Guesso , the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Eni Giuseppe Zafarana , and the CEO of Eni Claudio Descalzi .
“The first cargo of LNG from Congo is the result of the strong commitment of Eni and its partners and of the unwavering support of the Government of the Republic of the Congo. Eni and the local partners shared work forces, know-how and technologies, ensuring additional revenues to the country while contributing to Europe’s energy security,” said Descalzi.
The Congo LNG project, sanctioned in December 2022, came on stream after twelve months, in line with the initial timeline.
The first LNG cargo is currently being loaded and will sail to Piombino’s regasification terminal, in Italy, in the coming days, Eni stated.
The Congo LNG project, which will see the installation of two FLNG plants, is expected to reach an overall LNG production capacity of 3 million tons per year (approximately 4.5 billion cubic meters/year) from 2025. It will exploit the gas resources of the Marine XII project, fulfilling the country’s power generation needs while also fuelling LNG exports, and supplying new volumes of gas to international markets focusing on Europe.
The second FLNG plant , already under construction, is expected to become operative in 2025, with a capacity of 2.4 mtpa.
The entire volume of LNG produced will be marketed by Eni.