Venture Global Closes $15.1 Billion Funding for LNG Project
Venture Global, an American producer and exporter of low-cost US liquefied natural gas (LNG), on Monday announced a final investment decision (FID) and successful closing of the $15.1 billion project financing for the first phase of the company’s third project, Venture Global CP2 LNG (CP2), together with the associated CP Express Pipeline.
This milestone represents the largest standalone project financing ever, and the second largest project financing after the combined financings of Venture Global’s Plaquemines LNG. The transaction garnered enormous interest from the world’s leading banks, resulting in over $34 billion of commitments, and required no outside equity investment.
CP2 LNG, which is located an approximately 1,150 acre-site in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, adjacent to Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass LNG facility. It will build, own and operate a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility with an export capacity of at least 20 MTPA.
The CP Express pipeline will originate in Jasper and Newton County, Texas and feed natural gas to the proposed LNG facility in Cameron Parish, Louisiana.
Venture Global has a 100 MTPA of capacity in production, construction, or development and began producing LNG from its first facility in 2022 and is now one of the largest LNG exporters in the US.
The company’s vertically integrated business includes assets across the LNG supply chain including LNG production, natural gas transport, shipping and regasification.
The company’s first three projects, Calcasieu Pass, Plaquemines LNG, and CP2 LNG, are located in Louisiana along the U.S. Gulf Coast. Venture Global is developing Carbon Capture and Sequestration projects at each of its LNG facilities.
CP2 Most Advanced Project
Venture Global CEO Mike Sabel said that they were proud to have taken FID on their third greenfield project in under six years with over $80 billion in capital markets transactions executed to date.
“This success would not be possible without the dedication and relentless execution of the entire Venture Global team. Our early investments and work on the project make CP2 the most advanced project at FID to date. This project, fully owned by Venture Global and our shareholders, is expected to deliver reliable American LNG to the world beginning in 2027,” he added.
CP2 will have a peak production capacity of 28 MTPA. Phase 1 has contracted long-term SPAs with customers in Europe, Asia and the rest of the world. Accordingly, CP2 is a strategically important project to global energy supply and security. Venture Global now has a total contracted capacity of 43.5 MTPA across all three of its projects in Louisiana.
The lender group for the construction financing is comprised of the world’s leading banks, signalling significant demand for the US LNG investment not only in the US but also in Europe and Asia.
The lender group includes Bank of America, Barclays, Bayern LB, BBVA, CIBC, Deutsche Bank, FirstBank, Flagstar, Goldman Sachs, Helaba, ICBC, ING, Intesa, J.P. Morgan, LBBW, Mizuho, MUFG, Natixis, NBC, Nord LB, Raymond James, RBC, Regions, Santander, Scotiabank, SMBC, Standard Chartered, Truist and Wells Fargo.
