Japanese JGC, Partners to Build First US West Coast LNG Plant

Japanese JGC Corporation and its joint venture partners Kiewit Energy and Black & Veatch Construction, have been awarded the contract to engineer and build the Jordan Cove LNG plant on the American west coast, a joint statement issued by the partners said July 6.

The project will utilise Black & Veatch’s Prico technology, it said. JGC will work closely with Black & Veatch to perform the engineering, procurement and module fabrication for the project. Kiewit will manage the construction of the facility. 

The proposed Jordan Cove LNG terminal is located on a 400-acre, greenfield industrial site on the North Spit of lower Coos Bay, Oregon. It will be the first LNG export terminal project on the west coast of North America.

The Jordan Cove LNG terminal is projected to produce a maximum of 7.8mn metric tons/yr for export, with a majority of the LNG going to Pacific Rim countries, including Japan. It also includes about 320,000 m³ of storage capacity and deep-water marine facilities. The final investment decision is anticipated to be in 2019, with an expected in-service date of 2024.

Transit times of LNG shipments to east Asia are expected to be significantly less than what it takes from the from the Gulf of Mexico via the Panama Canal.

Calgary-based Veresen, which is backing the project, has long-terms contracts with Japanese Jera and Itochu, each taking 1.5mn mt/yr of LNG. According to media reports the company is talking to a third Japanese buyer to sell them 1-2mn mt/yr of LNG.

Shardul Sharma