NFE loads first Altamira LNG cargo

Last month, NFE launched production at its initial Fast LNG asset, claiming this is the “fastest large-scale LNG project ever developed”.

The company recently said that the first partial LNG cargo produced at the delayed 1.4 mtpa project is set to be loaded onto the 138,000-cbm Energos Princess on August 9.

This cargo will then be delivered to NFE’s La Paz, Mexico terminal in the following days.

“We performed our first transfer of a partial cargo early this morning,” NFE’s chief Wes Edens said during the second-quarter conference call on Friday.

Following the first load, NFE will now shut down the FLNG unit for about a week for planned maintenance, he said.

Edens said the project is excepted to achieve full production “shortly thereafter.”

NFE’s proprietary Fast LNG design pairs the latest advancements in modular liquefaction technology with jack up rigs or similar offshore infrastructure to enable a faster deployment schedule than traditional liquefaction facilities.

The company said the FLNG project adds more than $2 billion of infrastructure to its asset base.

NFE sent its liquefaction rig Pioneer II on September 26, 2023 to Altamira to start serving the FLNG project.

Prior to this, NFE’s utilities and accommodation rig, Pioneer III, arrived off Altamira, as well as the gas treatment rig.

The FLNG project consists of three rigs, Pioneer I, II, and III.

Besides the three rigs, the 160,000-cbm Penguin FSU serves the project as a floating storage unit.

In addition to this project, NFE recently closed its previously announced $700 million loan for its second FLNG unit which it aims to install onshore in Altamira.