Live Oak LNG Chairman Martin Houston announced Tuesday that the company will invest $2 billion to develop a liquefaction facility and liquefied natural gas export terminal near Lake Charles. The plant will be constructed on the Calcasieu Ship Channel, which connects the Lake Charles industrial region to worldwide markets via the Gulf of Mexico.
News of the project comes on the heels of South Africa-based Sasol Limited’s Jan. 28 decision that it had halted plans for its $14 billion LNG facility in Westlake.
The Live Oak LNG project will create 100 new direct jobs at the liquefaction and export facility, with an average annual salary of $75,000, plus benefits. Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project also will result in 385 new indirect jobs, for a total of 485 new permanent jobs in Calcasieu Parish and surrounding parishes in the southwest region. In addition, the LNG project will generate an estimated 1,000 construction jobs at peak building activity.
Live Oak LNG is a subsidiary of Houston-based Parallax Energy, launched last year to develop global LNG projects and a natural gas supply and trading business. According to a press release announcing the deal, the mid-sized Live Oak project will be designed for a plant capacity of up to 5 million metric tons per year and will include two storage tanks capable of holding 130,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas, along with port facilities to accommodate standard-sized LNG carriers. The project will be located southwest of Lake Charles on a 350-acre tract.
“Live Oak LNG is an innovative, efficient and cost-effective way to safely deliver LNG in smaller quantities that buyers can purchase incrementally,” Houston said in a prepared statement. “Having worked in Louisiana in the past, I know that Louisiana is a great place to do business. We will be working hand in hand with the community and government officials to ensure this new project brings economic benefit, business opportunities and jobs to Calcasieu Parish. We appreciate the incentives available and the support of local officials who have already provided a wealth of information.”
To secure the project, the state offered a competitive incentive package that includes utilization of its Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption programs.
Live Oak will soon begin the federal permitting process. Once permits are secured from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, expected by late 2016, construction will begin.
Construction jobs are expected to peak at 1,000 during the three-year building phase, and the plant is targeted to begin operations in late 2019.