Page 8 - GLNG Week 11 2023

GLNG AMERICAS GLNG

Freeport LNG receives restart approval

for final liquefaction train

US FREEPORT LNG, the US’s second-largest outage.
LNG export terminal, was granted regulatory For Freeport LNG, it marks the end of a
Lower gas-related approval for the restart of liquefaction train 1 lengthy restart procedure that faced numerous
emissions were more on March 8. It was the only remaining lique- delays. First estimates had envisioned that the
than offset by higher oil faction train that had not been restarted yet at export terminal would be back online in Octo-
and coal emissions. the 15mn tonnes per year (tpy) LNG facility ber 2022, but repairs and delays knocked back
located on Quintana Island, Texas after trains the restart of the first liquefaction train until
2 and 3 were given restart authorisation several February.
weeks ago. An investigation determined that the fire
It is now anticipated there will be a gradual occurred in pipe racks that support the transfer
ramp-up of output in the coming weeks to get of LNG from the storage tank area to the facili-
the facility close to full three-train production. In ty’s docks. Procedural, operational, safeguarding
recent weeks, Trains 2 and 3 have returned to full and employee failures combined with employee
commercial operation and marked production fatigue were cited by the report as the causes that
levels surpassing 1.5bn cubic feet (42.5mn cubic led to the incident. Since the explosion, Freeport
metres) per day. LNG has responded by raising employee num-
With the facility having been knocked offline bers by 30%.
following an explosion and subsequent fire in Freeport’s biggest customers such as Japanese
June 2022, changes in feed gas flows and pro- LNG importer JERA, Osaka Gas, BP, TotalEn-
duction rates are expected during the recom- ergies and SK E&S suffered millions of dollars
missioning and restart phase, given the lengthy in losses stemming from the eight-month long

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 11 17•March•2023