Carlyle Group considers sale of 25% stake in crude oil export terminal

US-based private equity firm Carlyle Group is reportedly in talks with three unidentified companies to sell a 25% stake in its crude oil export terminal in Corpus Christi, Texas.

The sale of the stake in the export terminal is worth $625m, Reuters reported citing an unnamed source.

The three companies engaged in discussions with Carlyle are said to be involved in the business of operating pipelines and terminals.

Additionally, the scope of the negotiations involves jointly operating a crude oil pipeline from Houston to Corpus Christi with an estimated capacity of between 700,000bpd to 1.2Mbpd.

The source added that Carlyle could finalise a deal with one of the three interested parties as early as 24 May.

The proposed pipeline that the company is seeking to operate under a joint-venture is expected to provide alternate access to US oil producers.

Meanwhile, Carlyle-backed Lone Star Ports is planning to file an application Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (FPISC) seeking a two-year approval of its South Texas crude export project, the news agency reported.

The company intends to build a 1.4Mbpd export facility on a harbour island near Corpus Christi, with operations expected to start next October.

The crude export facility will be able to fully load supertankers that can carry up to two million barrels of crude. This requires dredging a South Texas ship channel to a depth of 75ft to accommodate fully loaded supertankers.

A final investment decision is yet to be made on the dredging project, which will cost $400m.