The Congolese national oil and gas company SNPC (Société nationale des pétroles du Congo), Eni Congo, which owns and operates the Marine XII permit for the exploitation of liquid and gaseous hydrocarbons, and Russia's Lukoil, Eni Congo's partner on the Marine XII's permit, have signed a contract for the sale of LNG for a period of 20 years with Eni. The first phase of the Congo LNG export project, which is expected to be operationnal in December 2023, will have capacity of 0.6 Mt/year. The subsequent phase, planned for 2025, will elevate this capacity to 2.4 Mt/year, ultimately reaching an annual LNG export of 3 Mt. The Congo LNG project involves the installation of two floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) units at the Nenè and Litchendjili fields, which are already in construction, and at the fields yet to be developed. Construction started in April 2023.