LNG

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project, said the US Department of Energy issued an order granting authorization to export cargoes to non-free trade agreement countries.

The former head of LNG for Royal Dutch Shell and one of the early advocates of floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs), Kathleen Eisbrenner, has died at the age of 58 in Houston in Texas.

NextDecade Corp. said it received bid packages from US companies Bechtel Inc. and Fluor Corp. relating to the engineering, procurement and construction contracts for its Rio Grande export project in Texas.

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export project at the port of Brownsville in Texas, announced at the LNG2019 conference in Shanghai that it had signed a 20-year sale and purchase agreement with Royal Dutch Shell.

Shell will purchase LNG on a free-on-board basis whereby it provides its own shipping starting from the commercial operation date of Rio Grande LNG, currently expected in 2023.

The US company announced the key event at its exhibition stand at the LNG19 conference in the Chinese city backed by the International Gas Union (IGU) and Gas Technology Institute.

NextDecade said that around three-quarters of the purchased LNG volumes will be indexed to the North Sea Brent crude price and the remaining volumes indexed to US natural gas prices, including the benchmark Henry Hub.

“The SPA is the first-ever long-term contract with LNG produced out of the United States to be indexed to Brent and comes with full destination flexibility,” stated NextDecade.

“We are thrilled that we continue to achieve our milestones, as promised, and look forward to finalizing additional commercial agreements and to proceeding with the development of our Rio Grande LNG project,” added the company.

Matt Schatzman, NextDecade’s President and Chief Executive and a former executive with BG Group of the UK, said he was honoured to have Shell as the first foundation customer.

“Shell is not only the largest portfolio LNG company in the world, Shell is also a recognized pioneer in the global LNG business,” explained Schatzman.

“Shell was the first to sign a long-term SPA from the United States indexed to Henry Hub in 2011, and so it is fitting they are the first to sign a long-term SPA from a US LNG project indexed to Brent,” added Matt Schatzman.

Shell also welcomes the deal with Slavko Preocanin, Vice President of Shell LNG Marketing & Trading saying the deal secured more volumes for the Anglo-Dutch company for the 2020s.

“It ensures we can meet the growing demand for secure, flexible and cleaner energy from our global customers,” added Preocanin.

“We look forward to working with NextDecade in the years to come,” he added.

NextDecade said it anticipated making a positive final investment decision by the third quarter of 2019 on up to three LNG Trains in its first phase of development.

The Brownsville plant will produce around 27 MTPA of LNG and the company’s affiliated Rio Bravo Pipeline in South Texas is also being approved.

NextDecade has a second Texan export venture called Galveston Bay LNG.

Galveston Bay LNG will include a 97-mile affiliated pipeline to move 3 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Katy Hub in Waller County, while the liquefaction plant is proposed for a 550-acre site along the Texas City Ship Channel.

NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande liquefied natural gas export project in Texas, has held two public events to gather support for its second Texan export venture called Galveston Bay LNG.

The Houston-based company has just held two open house events, one at Rosenberg in Texas attended by landowners who inquired about the pipeline route, and a second at Texas City.

Galveston Bay LNG will include a 97-mile affiliated pipeline to move 3 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Katy Hub in Waller County, while the liquefaction plant is proposed for a 550-acre site along the Texas City Ship Channel.

The Galveston Bay liquefaction plant would produce an initial 5.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG.

“The Galveston Bay project open houses represent the first of several opportunities throughout the regulatory and permitting process, led by FERC, for area residents to learn more about the proposed project and to ask questions,” said NextDecade.

The company is also near the end of the regulatory process for the Rio Bravo Pipeline in South Texas and the Rio Grande export plant at the Port of Brownsville to produce around 27 MTPA of LNG.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality granted the Rio Grande project and its Rio Bravo Pipeline a state permit in December 2018, though federal regulators were not expected to make a decision about the projects until July 2019.

The Rio Bravo Pipeline is expected to transport 4.5 billion cubic feet per day from the Agua Dulce area to the Rio Grande liquefaction plant in Brownsville.

NextDecade’s Rio Grande project remains subject to final review by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

The FERC issued a draft environmental impact statement for the Rio Grande venture and its associated pipeline in October 2018.

A final EIS will be issued on April 26 for the Rio Grande developments and the FERC has established a 90-day decision deadline of July 25, 2019.

NextDecade, whose shares are listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange, anticipates a final investment decision on the Rio Grande LNG venture in the third quarter of 2019.

Dec 13 (LNGJ) - NextDecade Corp., the developer of the Rio Grande LNG export plant proposed for near the port of Brownsville, said the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality voted to issue a series of air permits to the venture with plans to produce 27 million tonnes per annum of LNG. “We appreciate the TCEQ’s commitment to the review of our project to deliver a safe and reliable LNG facility,” said Matt Schatzman, NextDecade’s President and Chief Executive. “We look forward to bringing thousands of jobs to the Rio Grande Valley and communities throughout the State of Texas, and to facilitating access to clean-burning, US-produced natural gas for our customers around the world,” added Schatzman. The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission plans to issue a final Environmental Impact Statement for Rio Grande LNG by the end of April 2019. NextDecade anticipates making a final investment decision in the third quarter of 2019.

The Port of Brownsville in Texas said it was looking forward to hosting the Rio Grande LNG export plant, to be located in the Port area, and outlined its progress and benefits.

NextDecade Corp., developer of the Rio Grande LNG project in Texas and other ventures, has agreed to sell convertible preferred stock to funds managed by US equity firm BlackRock after earlier in August selling $50 million of stock to other funds.

Galveston Bay LNG, a project planned by Houston-based company NextDecade, has been authorized by the US Department of Energy to export up to 785.5 billion cubic feet per annum, the equivalent of 16.5 million tonnes of LNG, from its proposed liquefaction facility in Texas City.

Developers of the Rio Grande liquefied natural gas project in Texas have told an audience in the Chinese capital Beijing they intend to produce abundant supplies for Asian markets from US resources in areas such as the Permian Basin.