US LNG exporter Cheniere expects to launch production at the third train from its Corpus Christi export plant in Texas in the coming weeks following the introduction of feed gas to the unit in October.
The Corpus Christi liquefaction plant currently consists of two operational trains with each having a capacity of about 5 million tonnes per annum. The third train will boost the total production to 15 mtpa.
Cheniere CEO Jack Fusco said during an earnings call on Friday that the third unit is about 97 percent complete.
“We expect first LNG production from Train 3 in the coming weeks. In fact, they’ll now predict substantial completion in the first quarter of 2021,” he said.
This means that the unit will be completed ahead of the schedule as Cheniere previously planned to complete the train in the second half of 2021.
Furthermore, construction is also progressing on the sixth 5 mtpa train at the firm’s Sabine Pass facility.
The 25 mtpa Sabine Pass plant has five operational trains and is currently the largest such facility in the US.
According to Fusco, Sabine Pass Train 6 is about 71 percent complete.
“In fact, they’ll continue to project substantial completion in the second half of 2022, having recently accelerated that timeframe,” he said.
Net loss grows
Cheniere reported a $463 million net loss in the third quarter of this year. This compares to a loss of $319 million in the same period last year.
Revenues also dropped from $2.17 billion last year to $1.46 billion logged in the July-September period this year.
Cheniere exported 55 LNG cargoes versus 108 shipments last year, down 49 percent year-on-year.
The lower number of cargoes is mostly related to customer cargo cancellations which also impacted the firm’s revenue.
Excluding the impact of out-of-period cargo cancellations, Cheniere’s third-quarter revenues of $1.46 billion would have been approximately $1.87 billion, the firm said.