Cameron LNG Terminal

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Cameron LNG is a liquefied natural gas (LNG) receipt terminal situated on a 260-acre industrial-zoned site along the Calcasieu Channel in Hackberry, Louisiana.

An export terminal is under construction at the location and planned for operation in 2019.

Location

It is located 18 miles from the Gulf of Mexico and within 35 miles of five major interstate pipelines that serve nearly two-thirds of all U.S. natural gas markets.

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Import Project Details

• Owner: Cameron LNG
• Parent: Sempra Energy
• Location: Hackberry, Louisiana, United States
• Coordinates: 30.035471,-93.3383568 (approximate)
• Capacity: 11.3 mtpa, 1.65 bcfd
• Status: Mothballed
• Type: Import
• Start Year: 2009

Note: mtpa = million tonnes per year; bcfd = billion cubic feet per day

Export Project Details

• Owner: Cameron LNG
• Parent: Sempra Energy
• Location: Hackberry, Louisiana, United States
• Coordinates: 30.035471,-93.3383568 (approximate)
• Capacity: 15 mtpa, 2.15 bcfd, with plans to eventually expand to 27 mtpa
• Status: Construction
• Type: Export
• Start Year: 2019

Note: mtpa = million tonnes per year; bcfd = billion cubic feet per day

Ownership

Cameron LNG is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sempra Energy (SRE), a California-based natural gas distribution and marketing company.

Background

Construction at Cameron LNG import terminal started in August 2005 and commercial operations began in July 2008.

On January 17, 2012, the U.S. Department of Energy authorized Cameron LNG to export liquefied natural gas. The permit allows Cameron to ship up to 1.7 billion cubic feet a day of LNG to countries possessing free-trade agreements with the U.S. The permit is valid for 20 years after the first export shipment.

In February 2014, the DOE allowed Cameron LNG to export gas to countries that do not have a free-trade agreement with the United States.

In June 2014, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill 266 to 150 that will speed up the process of liquefied natural gas exports. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Cory Gardner (R-CO), allows the Department of Energy a mere "30 days to approve LNG exports to non-Free Trade Agreement countries after an environmental review of the LNG facilities.

In October 2014, Cameron LNG broke ground for construction on the terminal's new LNG export facilities. Once construction is finished, Cameron will have be able to import as well as export LNG.

In February 2015, Cameron LNG began the pre-filing review process with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for the site's expansion of the company's existing "three-train liquefaction export project, which includes two additional liquefaction trains (trains No. 4 and No. 5) and one additional full containment LNG storage tank."

FERC cleared a path for final approval to expand Cameron's capacity and storage on February 2016.

Tokyo Gas announced March 2016 that it has signed a heads of agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation, a subsidiary Diamond Gas International, for the sale and purchase of 200,000 tons a year year of LNG over 20 years from the Cameron LNG. The price for the LNG will be linked to the U.S. Henry Hub natural gas price.

Construction of the Cameron LNG project is underway. More than 10 million work hours have, as of Fall 2016, resulted in 50% project construction completion.

Cameron LNG is expected to begin operations in 2019.

Opposition

Environmental groups, Gulf Restoration Network, RESTORE, and Sierra Club, in 2014 filed a request for rehearing and stay of FERC’s order granting authority to Cameron LNG to construct the proposed facility. They charged that FERC’s environmental analysis failed to adequately consider the effects of increased gas production and air pollution, as well as effect on nearby wetlands.