Shell plans Gulf offshore LNG terminal
The proposed Gulf Landing terminal is expected to be operational in 2008-09, with the capacity to deliver one billion cubic feet of natural gas per day into the U.S. interstate pipeline network. Shell is filing an application under the Deepwater Port Act for a license authorizing the construction and operation of the proposed LNG storage and re-gasification facility to be located 38 miles offshore Louisiana in West Cameron Block 213. "Gulf Landing is our first application for a Shell-operated LNG terminal in the U.S.," said Gus Noojin, President of Shell U.S. Gas & Power LLC. "The new terminal will supplement our sizable capacity positions at existing U.S. LNG terminals and will make an important contribution to long-term U.S. natural gas supply." Gulf Landing will be a concrete, gravity-based structure, which will be floated to the site and lowered to rest on the seafloor in about 55 feet of water. The facility will include a berth for mooring LNG carriers, LNG storage and re-gasification facilities, and pipelines to connect with existing natural gas pipeline systems in the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf Landing natural gas output will be delivered into as many as five major interstate pipelines serving Louisiana and parts of the U.S. Southeast, Midwest, Northeast, and Mid-Atlantic region. "Locating an LNG terminal in the established Gulf of Mexico natural gas producing area optimizes the existing transportation network and offsets future production declines from natural gas fields," said Noojin. "However, new LNG terminals are needed in other regions of the US to meet natural gas demand growth. Shell, as the world's largest private producer of LNG, is well-positioned to help meet these needs." Shell NA LNG LLC currently owns rights to one-third of the capacity at the Dominion Cove Point LNG terminal in Maryland, which has the capability to deliver 750 million cubic feet of gas per day. Shell entity also holds the entire capacity of the expansion underway at Southern LNG Company's LNG terminal in Elba Island, Georgia. The expansion is scheduled for completion in early 2006 with the capability to deliver 360 MMcf/d.