Argent LNG signs land lease for export plant at Port Fourchon

Updated June 27 to include Worley partnership details in fourth paragraph. 

Argent LNG signed a long-term lease agreement with the Greater Lafourche Port Commission, securing 144 acres of land at Port Fourchon, La., as the company moves to develop an LNG export plant with a projected capacity of up to 20 million tonnes/year (tpy), pending a waterway suitability assessment and overall federal approval.

According to the company website, the initial phase will see the installation of liquefaction trains with an initial capacity of 10 million tpy at an estimated cost of $10 billion. A second phase calls for four additional LNG trains with capacity of up to 15 million tpy, the company said.

Argent LNG expects to employ factory-built, mid-scale, modular plant designs with the manufacture, assembly, and fabrication of process systems offsite, but close to Port Fourchon, reducing transit times and logistics costs. Up to 23 Mw of wind-generated electricity is expected to power the trains, supplemented by gas-generated compression motors. Worley has been selected as program manager and Kiewit as the EPC contractor.

Worley's initial workscope will focus on developing site layouts and selecting the appropriate technology. The company also will initiate the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) process with Argent and "move into the pre-FEED phase where greater definition of the development will be achieved," the company said.

Argent LNG anticipates operations to commence in 2029-2030.