Saguaro Energía LNG Terminal

From Global Energy Monitor
This article is part of the Global Fossil Infrastructure Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.
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Saguaro Energía LNG Terminal, also known as the Mexico Pacific LNG Terminal, is a proposed LNG terminal in Puerto Libertad, Sonora, Mexico.

Location

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Project details

  • Owner: AECOM Capital [50%], DKRW Energy [50%][1]
  • Parent company: AECOM [50%]; DKRW Energy [50%]
  • Location: Puerto Libertad, Sonora, Mexico
  • Coordinates: 29.905838, -112.688038 (approximate)
  • Type: Export[2]
  • Status: Proposed[2]
  • Capacity: 28.2 mtpa (six trains of 4.7 mtpa each)
    • Phase 1 (Saguaro Energía, Trains 1 & 2): 9.4 mtpa[3]
    • Phase 2 (Saguaro Energía, Train 3): 4.7 mtpa[3]
    • Phase 3 (Saguaro Energía II, Trains 4-6): 14.1 mtpa[4][5] to 15 mtpa[6]
  • Start Year:
  • Cost: US$14 billion (cost for liquefaction plant and associated pipeline infrastructure; unclear what part of this figure applies specifically to the LNG terminal)[13]
  • Financing:
  • FID status:

Background

In March 2020 Mexico Pacific Limited (MPL) signed a Front End Engineering Design (FEED) contract with Technip USA to build a 12-mtpa LNG export terminal.[17] In April 2020, MPL appointed Japanese investment bank Mitsubishi UFG as the project's financial advisor.[18]

MPL originally stated its intention to take a final investment decision (FID) in early 2021, with operations commencing in 2024. The terminal was to be constructed in three phases, with each phase adding 4 mtpa of capacity.[2]

In April 2021, S&P Global Market Intelligence reported that an FID was expected in late 2021 or early 2022, with exports starting by 2025. The anticipated FID was to cover the first two trains.[19]

MPL subsequently increased the proposed size of each train to 4.7 mtpa, resulting in a total capacity of 14.1 mtpa for the three-phase project. According to the company website, Phase 1 was to consist of the first 4.7 mtpa liquefaction train, one tank and one berth; Phase 2 would comprise a second 4.7 mtpa liquefaction train and a second tank; and Phase 3 would include a third 4.7 mtpa liquefaction train.[4]

In January 2022, MPL announced that it was doubling the originally proposed size of the project and planning for six 4.7 mtpa trains with a total capacity of 28.2 mtpa.[5] The company reported that it had already secured agreements for supplying 14 mpta through memoranda of understanding with two or more parties, and expected to make its FID on the first two trains in the second quarter of 2022, with commercial operations to begin in the second half of 2025.[5]

In July 2023, Mexico’s state Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) reached a deal with Saguaro Energía LNG to supply the project with gas for 20 years. Gas supplied by CFE International, the company’s trading division, will amount to 40% of the project's required feedgas.[20]

In August 2023, MPL said it was aiming to start construction of the first two liquefaction trains before the end of 2023 and that it would take four years for these to come online. Construction of the third train would likely start at some point in 2024, with the terminal then expected to be operational by 2028, when it will start servicing offtake deals with Shell, Exxonmobil, Guangzhou, and Zhejiang Energy.[21]

In October 2023, MPL's vice president of corporate finance, Tyler Kruse, reiterated that a final investment decision (FID) on Trains 1 and 2 was imminent and could be expected before the end of 2023.[12]

Sales & purchase agreements with customers in Asia

In April 2022, Mexico Pacific confirmed that it had signed a 20-year deal to supply 2 mtpa of LNG from the Saguaro Energía terminal to China's Guangzhou Development Group; under terms of the deal, 1 million tpa would be supplied from each of the terminal's first two trains.[22]

In a May 2022 interview with S&P Global, Mexico Pacific reiterated that it had secured contracts with multiple Asian LNG importers, and expected to make an FID on trains 1 and 2 during the second half of 2022.[23] Asian and European customers were said to be competing for LNG volumes from train 3, partly in response to supply shortages provoked by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.[23]

In June 2022, after receiving a key permit from the Mexican government, Mexico Pacific announced that it hoped to make an FID by September 2022, which would put the project on track to begin commercial operations as early as 2026.[9]

In July 2022, Shell announced that it had signed a 20-year sales and purchase agreement with Mexico Pacific; under terms of the contract, Shell will become an anchor customer for the new terminal, offtaking 2.6 mtpa (million tonnes per annum) of LNG (liquefied natural gas) from the terminal's first two trains.[10]

In February 2023, Mexico Pacific announced that ExxonMobil LNG Asia Pacific had agreed to purchase an additional 2 mtpa of LNG from trains 1 and 2 over a 20-year period, while simultaneously securing an option to purchase 1 mtpa from the Saguaro terminal's third train.[11][24][25] Mexico Pacific CEO Ivan Van der Walt noted that the volumes covered under the new contracts were sufficient for the company to make an FID on the Saguaro terminal's first two trains, and that Mexico Pacific would now shift its focus to finding additional clients for its proposed third train.[14]

In March 2023, Shell confirmed that its affiliate Shell Eastern Trading had signed a new 20-year purchase agreement for an additional 1.1 mtpa of LNG, to be supplied from the Saguaro terminal's third train.[26]

In July 2023, Mexico Pacific confirmed that it had signed yet another 20-year agreement to supply 1 mtpa from the Saguaro Energía terminal to China's Zhejiang Energy, with the first shipment to be delivered in 2027.[27]

In August 2023, Mexico Pacific announced that ConocoPhillips had signed a 20-year sales and purchase agreement to offtake 2.2 million mtpa from Trains 1, 2 and 3 combined, further bolstering the project's viability.[28]

In December 2023, Woodside signed an agreement to purchase 1.3 mtpa from Train 3 over a 20-year period. Mexico Pacific stated in a press release that the company expected to make an FID on Train 3 within the first half of 2024.[29]

In January 2024, ExxonMobil LNG Asia Pacific added momentum to the terminal's prospects by signing a new 20-year agreement to purchase 1.2 mtpa from Train 3.[30]

Evolving size of the project

As of early July 2023, Mexico Pacific's website showed that the Saguaro Energía project was to be developed in two phases: an initial phase encompassing two 4.7 mtpa liquefaction trains, two tanks and one berth; and a second phase incorporating a third 4.7 mtpa train.[3] The website made no mention of the previously proposed trains 4 through 6, although some industry analysts continued to include this 14.1 mtpa expansion phase in their forecasts, with an anticipated FID date of 2024.[16]

By late July 2023, the wording on Mexico Pacific's website had been changed to incorporate the expanded six-train project. The website referred to the first three trains as "Mexico Pacific's anchor project, Saguaro Energía... with commercialization of Trains 1-2 complete and Train 3 under final negotiations." The next three trains, now listed with a total capacity of 15 mtpa, were described as "Saguaro Energía II."[6]

Opposition

Numerous citizens' groups in Mexico, including Greenpeace, Nuestro Futuro, Alianza Mexicana Contra el Fracking, Conexiones Climáticas and Planeteando have called for the government to cancel all pending LNG export terminal projects in the country. The groups argue that LNG terminals create a host of serious negative impacts for local communities, including health effects from toxic chemicals such as benzine and nitrogen oxides, climate change associated with heightened levels of greenhouse gas emissions, devastation of marine life due to dredging, and the associated negative economic impacts on fisheries.[31]

Articles and resources

References

  1. The United States DOE Authorizes Mexico Pacific Limited LLC to Export 12 mpta of LNG to FTA and Non-FTA Countries from Pacific Coast Terminal in Mexico, AVAIO Capital, Mar. 27, 2019
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Technip USA wins FEED contract for MPL LNG project in Mexico, NS Energy, Mar. 11, 2020
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 "Saguaro Energía: North America's Next Generation of LNG". Mexico Pacific. Archived from the original on July 4, 2023.
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Advantaged Project Execution: Anchor Project". Mexico Pacific Limited. Retrieved 2022-03-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 deLuna, Marcy (2022-01-19). "Mexico Pacific says it will double LNG processing capacity at proposed plant". Reuters.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "Saguaro Energía: North America's Next Generation of LNG". Saguaro Energía. July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |archive-date= (help); External link in |archive-date= (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. "GIIGNL Annual Report 2023 (p 47)" (PDF). GIIGNL. July 14, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. "Advancing North American LNG". Mexico Pacific Limited. Retrieved 2022-03-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. 9.0 9.1 "LNG developer gets Mexican government approval as investment decision nears". S&P Global. June 6, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. 10.0 10.1 "Shell and Mexico Pacific sign long-term LNG sales and purchase agreement". Shell. July 12, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. 11.0 11.1 "Mexico Pacific to sell LNG to ExxonMobil". OIl & Gas Journal. February 8, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. 12.0 12.1 "Permian Gas to Anchor Mexico Pacific LNG Exports | Hart Energy". Hart Energy. 2023-10-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. "AMLO: Mexico Pacific Ltd. to invest US $14B in Sonora LNG plant". Mexico News Daily. May 4, 2023.
  14. 14.0 14.1 "Mexico Pacific to sell LNG from Sonora export plant to Exxon Mobil". Reuters. February 7, 2023.
  15. De La Rosa, Claudia (June 2, 2023). "LNG developers in Mexico face long road ahead". ICIS.
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 "Mexico Gas Summit: Ana Procuna with Mexico Pacific shows a slide with a list of proposed LNG export projects and their project final investment decision dates". Sergio Chapa * Twitter. June 7, 2023. Retrieved 2023-07-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. Mexico Pacific Limited Finalizes FEED Contract, Cision, Mar. 9, 2020
  18. Mexico Pacific advances with financing for LNG terminal, bnamericas, Apr. 16, 2020
  19. "Mexico Pacific is lining up deals for 'black pearl of North American LNG'," S&P Market Intelligence, April 21, 2021
  20. Oil & Gas Journal. CFE reaches 20-year gas supply agreement with Saguaro Energía LNG. July 19, 2023.
  21. Mexico Pacific poised to start Saguaro construction this year, Business News Americas, Aug. 4, 2023
  22. "China's Guangzhou Development, Mexico Pacific sign 2 mil mt/year LNG deal". Reuters. April 1, 2022.
  23. 23.0 23.1 Yep, Eric (2022-05-26). "Interview: Mexico Pacific to start 'significant' construction in June amid LNG demand surge". S&P Global.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  24. "ExxonMobil comprará GNL de la planta Saguaro Energía, en Puerto Libertad". Energía a Debate. February 7, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  25. "Mexico Pacific seals LNG SPAs with ExxonMobil". LNG Prime. February 7, 2023.
  26. "Shell to offtake another 1.1 million mt/year of LNG from Mexico Pacific export project". S & P Global. March 27, 2023.
  27. "Mexico Pacific signs 20-year LNG supply deal with China's Zhejiang Energy". Reuters. July 6, 2023.
  28. "Mexico Pacific Concludes Long-Term LNG Sales and Purchase Agreements Across Three Trains with ConocoPhillips". Mexico Pacific. August 3, 2023. Retrieved 2023-08-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  29. "Mexico Pacific and Woodside Sign Long-Term LNG Sales and Purchase Agreement". Mexico Pacific. December 5, 2023. Retrieved 2024-01-31.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  30. "Exxon to buy another 1.2 mln tonnes of LNG per annum from Mexico Pacific". Reuters. January 16, 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  31. "El alto de EEUU a proyectos de Gas Natural Licuado evidencia que el plan de México para exportarlo es peligroso y debe ser cancelado". Greenpeace México. 2024-01-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

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