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PGNiG and Venture Global LNG Agree New Purchase

Calcasieu Pass
Calcasieu Pass

Published Jun 12, 2019 10:56 PM by The Maritime Executive

In connection with the state visit of the President of Poland, Andrzej Duda to Washington D.C., the Polish Oil and Gas Company (PGNiG) has signed an agreement with Venture Global LNG to purchase an additional 1.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG. 

Under the agreement, the volume of LNG from the Plaquemines terminal will increase from 1.0 to 2.5 million tonnes per year (from 1.35 to 3.38 bcm of natural gas after regasification). Deliveries are expected to commence in 2023. This new amendment raises PGNiG's total commitment with Venture Global LNG projects to 3.5 MTPA (4.73 bcm), sourced from Calcasieu Pass (1 MTPA) and Plaquemines LNG (2.5 MTPA).

Venture Global LNG has begun construction of the 10 MTPA Venture Global Calcasieu Pass facility at the intersection of the Calcasieu Ship Channel and the Gulf of Mexico and is developing the 20 MTPA Venture Global Plaquemines LNG facility 30 miles south of New Orleans on the Mississippi River. The company is also developing the 20 MTPA Venture Global Delta LNG facility, also on the Mississippi River south of New Orleans. Venture Global has raised approximately $2.2 billion of capital to-date to support the projects.

United States Secretary of Energy, Rick Perry, and Secretary of State for Strategic Energy Infrastructure of Poland, Piotr Naimski, attended the signing ceremony. Perry said: "Poland and the United States have a strong and strategic alliance and friendship which is fortified by a shared commitment to energy security and an understanding that true energy security is achieved through energy diversity. Today's announcement of the significant expansion of the existing LNG partnership between Venture Global and PGNiG further solidifies that goal. Under President Trump's leadership, our two nations have launched the U.S.-Poland Strategic Energy Dialogue which fosters and supports partnerships just like this. We look forward to even more in the months and years to come."

"We are increasing our LNG portfolio in terms of volumes, which we will receive from the USA after 2022, i.e. after the expiration of the Yamal contract. Thanks to good relations with our American partners and effective negotiations, we have achieved a highly competitive LNG supply from the Plaquemines terminal," said Piotr Wo?niak, President of the PGNiG Management Board.

Plaquemines LNG uses the same process system as Calcasieu Pass, provided by Baker Hughes.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently issued a Final Environmental Impact Statement for both the Plaquemines LNG facility and the associated Gator Express Pipeline.

Contracts with Venture Global LNG projects have been concluded for 20 years in the Free-on-Board formula. This means that from the moment of loading in the liquefaction facility, the purchaser, in this case PGNiG, controls the LNG on board, including deciding on the cargo's destination.

In May, Venture Global LNG and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners executed definitive agreements under which Stonepeak will exclusively provide a $1.3 billion equity investment in the Calcasieu Pass LNG export facility.