US regulators have approved Venture Global’s request to increase the capacity of its 20 Mt/year Plaquemines LNG export terminal in south-east Louisiana (United States). The project began LNG exports at the end of 2024 with a peak capacity of 24 Mt/year and will now be able to raise its production capacity to 27.2 Mt/year. The Plaquemines LNG will consist of 36 midscale liquefaction trains that should be operational by the end of 2025. The company had previously requested a capacity increase in early 2022, however the proposal was poorly received by environmental groups due to its GHG emissions. The recent FERC’s approval specified that the increased emissions would only come from additional marine vessel traffic and not the export facility itself.
The US became a net gas exporter in 2017, and exports are increasing rapidly and have more than quadrupled since 2014, reaching 223 bcm in 2023, with LNG making up more than 75% of exported volumes. LNG exports rose by 12% in 2023, driven by strong LNG demand in the EU, which accounted for around two thirds of total US LNG exports. The US LNG export capacities are expected to increase by more than 50% by 2026 and LNG export volumes to double by 2050.
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