Cheniere Energy closed August with two key milestones for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations in the United States. The company substantially completed Phase 3 of its Corpus Christi LNG project in Texas and reached the production and export of its 5,000th shipment.
With the new infrastructure, Cheniere’s LNG production capacity increases by more than 20 % to approximately 56 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). This capacity is distributed between its Corpus Christi and Sabine Pass facilities on the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Cheniere Completes Phase 3 of Corpus Christi LNG
The Corpus Christi LNG Stage 3 project reached substantial completion on August 28, 2026, when Bechtel Energy transferred care, custody, and control of the seventh and final liquefaction train included in this phase to Cheniere. Cheniere had previously authorized Bechtel to fully commence the project in June 2022. The first LNG production from the first train occurred in December 2024, less than three years after that authorization.
According to the company, the project was completed safely, within budget, and ahead of schedule, the expansion adds more than 10 million tons per annum (mtpa) of production capacity to Corpus Christi LNG, bringing the facility’s total capacity to over 25 mtpa. Jack Fusco, president and CEO of Cheniere, highlighted the collaborative effort between the energy company and Bechtel to execute the project. He noted that the new capacity will allow the company to increase its energy supply while meeting its commercial commitments.
Cheniere reaches 5,000 LNG shipments
In conjunction with the Corpus Christi expansion, the company confirmed the production and export of its 5,000th LNG shipment from its U.S. Gulf Coast operations. The company celebrated the milestone with the loading of the LNG carrier Yari LNG. The vessel departed Sabine Pass on August 29 th bound for Asia.
This fact takes on greater significance when considering the company’s evolution over the last decade, Cheniere produced its first LNG shipment in 2016 and claims to have reached 5,000 shipments faster than any other global LNG producer.
Producing and exporting 5,000 LNG shipments is an extraordinary achievement, and doing so in record time just 10 years after our first shipment makes it even more exceptional.
Fusco
The Cheniere platform exceeds 340 million tons
Since it began exporting in 2016, Cheniere has supplied more than 340 million tons of liquefied natural gas to international markets. The company also estimates that its platform currently represents more than 10 % of the world’s total LNG capacity. Its operational infrastructure is primarily concentrated in Sabine Pass, Louisiana, and Corpus Christi, Texas.
The completion of Corpus Christi Stage 3 reinforces this scale, with Cheniere now operating approximately 56 million tons per annum (mtpa) of combined capacity across its two liquefaction facilities. In addition, the company has approximately another 5 mtpa of expected capacity currently under construction. This further expands Cheniere’s platform, which encompasses natural gas supply and transportation, liquefaction, vessel chartering, and LNG delivery.
Corpus Christi expands the role of US LNG
The full entry of the seven Phase 3 trains increases capacity Corpus Christi LNG at a time of high export activity for Cheniere.
The combination of Corpus Christi and Sabine Pass allows the company to operate one of the world’s largest liquefaction platforms. In turn, the 5,000 cargoes reflect the speed with which these facilities have increased their share of international liquefied natural gas flows over the past decade.
With Corpus Christi Stage 3 substantially completed, Cheniere adds more than 10 million tons per annum (mtpa) of capacity in Texas and consolidates approximately 56 mtpa of operational LNG production on the U.S. Gulf Coast.
Source: Offshor Energy
Photo: Cheniere
