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Cheniere’s Corpus Christi plant currently liquefies natural gas at three operational trains, each with a capacity of about 5 mtpa.
In June 2022, Cheniere made the final investment decision on the Corpus Christi Stage 3 expansion project, worth about $8 billion.
Compatriot Bechtel officially started construction on the project in October of the same year.
The project includes building seven midscale trains, each with an expected liquefaction capacity of about 1.49 mtpa.
Cheniere’s unit, Corpus Christi Liquefaction, said in the October construction report filed with the US FERC on Monday that the overall project completion rate for Stage 3 is 73.2 percent.
The project was 67.8 percent complete as of the end of September.
Stage 3 engineering and procurement are 96.2 percent and 93.9 percent complete, respectively, while subcontract and direct hire construction work are 87.5 percent and 36 percent complete, respectively.
During October, key work fronts included aboveground piping in Train 1 – 2 and outside boundary limits (OSBL), concrete pours in Trains 2 – 7, structural steel erection in Trains 2 – 6 and OSBL, underground piping installation in Trains 4 – 7 and OSBL, and equipment setting in Trains 1-7.
CCL said additional continued work includes road improvements, drainage work, and mobilization of temporary facilities, equipment, and personnel.
Moreover, Bechtel continued testing of aboveground piping at Train 1, installation of pipe spools, loop checks, and cable pulls for power and instrumentation.
During November, Bechtel will continue the same work on the first train.
First LNG production nears
Cheniere initially said that LNG deliveries from the expansion project were expected to begin in 2025 with full production in 2027.
However, Cheniere’s CEO Jack Fusco said in August last year that the company is expecting to complete the expansion phase ahead of schedule.
The company said in its second-quarter report that it expects to achieve first LNG production from the first train at the end of 2024.
Substantial completion of the project is expected during 1H 2025 – 2H 2026.
Fusco recently said that Cheniere expects to start introducing gas into the first train of the Corpus Christi expansion project in the coming weeks.
Fusco said during Cheniere’s third-quarter earnings call that Bechtel continues construction execution on Corpus Christi Stage 3 “on budget and on accelerated schedule.”
“Pre-commissioning activities continue on Train 1, with nearly half the required systems turned over to commissioning and start-up teams, who are beginning to place those systems into service,” he said.
In addition to this expansion, Cheniere plans to build two more liquefaction trains as part of the third expansion phase at the Corpus Christi plant.
Cheniere aims to take a final investment decision on this project in 2025.
Also, Cheniere aims to build two new liquefaction trains as part of the Sabine Pass Stage 5 expansion project to add up to 20 mtpa of capacity to the giant 30 mtpa facility.