Calcasieu Pass LNG Export Project Enters Commercial Operation

Venture Global recently placed its Calcasieu Pass LNG export facility into commercial operation, allowing long-term customers to offtake low-cost LNG just 68 months after reaching final investment decision. The facility, among the fastest greenfield LNG projects completed to date, holds numerous multi-billion-dollar contracts with key European trade allies. These customers will receive North American LNG for 20-year terms.

“I am incredibly proud of our team who have worked to successfully construct and commission our first LNG project,” said Mike Sabel, Venture Global CEO. “We are excited to reach this milestone and are grateful for our regulators and supply chain partners who have worked with our team to reach commercial operations as efficiently and safely as possible.”

About Calcasieu Pass

The LNG export project is equipped with multiple medium-scale modular liquefaction trains and process facilities, which were supplied and installed in sequential order. Venture Global’s construction strategy allowed Calcasieu Pass to surpass significant challenges, such as the global coronavirus pandemic, two hurricanes, and an unforeseen manufacturing issue related to the facility’s power island.

Calcasieu Pass facility under construction; image credit: Egypt Oil & Gas

Following a multi-year component rectification and remediation project that strengthened the facility’s redundancy features, Calcasieu Pass may operate safely and reliably. In terms of safety, the facility holds a positive record that exceeds the industry’s average total recordable incident rate: a statistic tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Heavy Construction Industry, which represents incidents per 100 workers each year. Venture Global’s project falls significantly under this margin.

The long-term LNG sales and purchase agreements at Calcasieu Pass boast affordable price points for global customers, with average liquefaction fees under $2/mmbtu. In early October 2023, Baker Hughes obtained an equipment supply contract for the delivery of a modularized LNG system and power island to Venture Global LNG. This contract came as an extension to a previously signed master equipment supply agreement between Baker Hughes and Venture Global LNG for more than 100 MTPA of production capacity (expanded from 70 MTPA).

Venture Global + Baker Hughes

In early February 2025, Venture Global LNG awarded Baker Hughes a major contract to provide a modularized LNG system and power island to support its U.S.-based LNG projects. The company also signed a multi-year services agreement to conduct maintenance, inspection, repairs, and engineering during Phases 1 and 2 of the Plaquemines LNG project in Louisiana.

To date, Baker Hughes supplied Venture Global LNG with over 100 MTPA of production capacity, providing solutions to the Calcasieu Pass and Plaquemines LNG facilities. Recently, Plaquemines LNG successfully loaded and shipped its first LNG cargo after achieving first production.

U.S. LNG

In April 2024, the U.S. Energy Information Administration anticipated a modest increase in U.S. LNG exports for the year (2%) followed by significant growth in 2025 (an additional 18%). This growth is mirrored by expectations for a rise in U.S. natural gas exports by pipeline (3% in 2024, 4% in 2025) and a slight dip and recovery in pipeline imports in 2024 and 2025, respectively.

Concurrently, S&P Global Ratings forecasted stable hydrocarbon prices supported by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, alongside a year-end rebound in gas prices driven by LNG export expansion and infrastructure developments.