Elba Liquefaction begins commercial production of project units

The Elba Liquefaction Company (ELC), a joint venture (JV) between Kinder Morgan (KMI) and EIG Global Energy, has announced the start of commercial operations of the first of ten units for the $2bn Elba Island Liquefaction project.

The operations commencement comes following approval from the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

The Elba Liquefaction facility was previously only a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal. The facility is now also able to produce LNG for export purposes.

With the operational start of the first unit, the company is generating approximately 70% of the expected total daily revenue of the liquefaction units.

Kinder Morgan South Region Natural Gas president Norman Holmes said: “This is a great milestone that was achieved with an exemplary safety record.

“It is also an important step for the United States as the country becomes a key energy exporter.”

The company noted that the remaining nine units are progressing, with the start-up activities underway on the second and third units.

The commissioning of units four to six is in progress, while construction on the remaining units is almost complete.

Once the remaining units are operational, the Elba Liquefaction facility’s total production capacity is expected to exceed 2.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of LNG for export.

ELC will own the liquefaction units and other ancillary equipment, while other facilities associated with the project are fully owned by KMI.

The project is backed by a 20-year contract with Shell, which is subscribed to 100% of the liquefaction capacity.

Last month, Kinder Morgan started full commercial operations of the Gulf Coast Express Pipeline Project (GCX).