The US Department of Energy said Thursday it approved Argent LNG's request to export liquefied natural gas to countries with Free Trade Agreements.
The authorization allows Argent LNG to export up to 1.294 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or about 25 million metric tons of LNG annually, from its proposed Port Fourchon, Louisiana, terminal over a 20-year term beginning with its first commercial export, DOE said.
The Department said Argent's separate application to export LNG to countries without Free Trade Agreements remains under review and will be addressed in a separate order.
Argent filed both export applications on March 10. The company requested authority to export LNG on its own behalf and as an agent for other cargo owners under multiple contracts, the order said.
DOE said Argent must file long-term export and natural gas supply agreements within 30 days of execution and submit semiannual progress reports until the project enters service.
The proposed facility will occupy about 900 acres at Port Fourchon and include 12 modular liquefaction units, two 220,000-cubic-meter LNG storage tanks, two marine loading berths and a 350-megawatt gas-fired power plant, according to the filing.
Argent told the DOE it expects to begin construction in December 2027 and start commercial operations in the first quarter of 2030.
The company said it has not signed long-term LNG supply contracts but has reached a non-binding agreement under which Bangladesh's state-owned Petrobangla could purchase up to 5 million tons of LNG annually.
It also signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Turkish energy exchange Enerji Piyasalari Isletme, according to the filing.
The approval covers exports to US Free Trade Agreement partners, including Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, Panama, Peru, South Korea and Singapore, along with future qualifying FTA countries, the order said.