Terminal Name: Trunkline LNG > Project Overview

May 13, 2010: Various terminals along the US Gulf Coast, including Sabine Pass LNG, Cameron LNG and the Trunkline Lake Charles terminal are unaffected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, largely because no cargos are being delivered to the Gulf currently. According to AISLive ship tracker, only one cargo was slated (on May 14) to be delivered to into the Gulf to the Lake Charles terminal.

Trunkline LNG plans an infrastructure enhancement project for completion by mid-2008 to increase fuel efficiency and cost savings using ambient-air temperature to warm and regasify the LNG and natural gas liquids (NGL) extraction plant. The addition of extraction equipment will give its customer, BG LNG Services, the ability to extract ethane and other heavier hydrocarbons from the LNG stream before it is sent to interstate pipeline networks, thereby broadening BG's possible LNG supply sources.

March 30, 2010: On March 15, Southern Union announced that it received approval to start up its new ambient-air vaporizers and NGL extraction process at its Trunkline terminal near Lake Charles, La. Trunkline will be only the second terminal, behind Freeport LNG, to use ambient air systems to vaporize LNG.

The NGL recovery operation, however, is the first to be installed in North America. It will allow BG to import a greater variety of LNG compositions into the terminal.

November 21, 2008: The Golar Freeze, a 30-year-old LNG tanker chartered by BG Group, was expected to arrive at the Trunkline LNG terminal in Lake Charles, Louisiana on November 14, according to ship tracking data.  Despite a slowdown in LNG imports into the United States, the delivery would have marked the second LNG cargo to arrive at Trunkline in a week, and yet only the fourth this year. However, the Freeze was diverted from the terminal and is now underway in the Atlantic Ocean and on course for southern Europe.

November 12, 2008: The Golar Freeze, a 30-year-old LNG tanker chartered by BG Group, will arrive at the Trunkline LNG terminal in Lake Charles, Louisiana on November 14, according to ship tracking data. Despite a slowdown in LNG imports into the United States, this delivery will mark the second LNG cargo to arrive at Trunkline this week, and yet only the fourth this year.

August 3, 2007: Trunkline's capacity remains underutilized. In Nov. 2006, the terminal was using about 30% of its capacity, having received only six cargos -- four from Egypt and two from Nigeria. Egyptian cargos started arriving at Trunkline in April 2006. BG, the sole user (shipper) at the Trunkline terminal, is the operator of the Idku, Egypt liquefaction plant. Train 2 started operations in September 2005 and is believed to be the supplier of the Trunkline cargos. BG owns 38% of ELNG Train 2 and half of the gas it liquefies from the Sapphire field. In early July 2006, Trunkline LNG completed Phases I and II of its terminal expansion, increasing sustained sendout capacity to 1.8 bcf/d and peak sendout capacity to 2.1 bcfd. The Phase I expansion, which included a second ship berth and a new LNG storage tank that increased terminal storage capacity to 9 billion cubic feet, was placed in service on April 5. The Phase II expansion included the construction of unloading capabilities at the terminal's second dock.

Summer 2007: Southern Union reported $4.572 billion in assets. It earned $101 million in 2003. Terminal's capacity is contracted through 2018 by BG Group. This infrastructure enhancement project, which is expected to cost approximately $250 million, will increase sendout flexibility at Trunkline LNG's Lake Charles, LA, terminal. The project is designed to increase fuel efficiency and cost savings by using the ambient air temperature to warm and regasify the LNG. The new vaporization equipment will reduce the amount of fuel used to regasify the LNG. This project is supplemental to the Phase I and Phase II capacity expansions.