The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the construction of a liquefied natural gas export project on Monday,
FERC approved Dominion Resources Inc. on Monday to build the Cove Point LNG project in the state of Maryland, in the U.S., said a statement on the FERC website.
'We are pleased to receive this final approval that allows us to start constructing this important project that offers significant economic, environmental and geopolitical benefits,' said Diane Leopold, president of Dominion Energy.
The construction of the export project is estimated to cost between $3.4 - $3.8 billion, while the Dominion company has fully subscribed to the marketed capacity of the project with its 20-year service agreements signed with companies in Japan and India, said the news release.
The Cove Point terminal is to export up to 5.75 metric tons of LNG per year, and will start its service in 2017, while the Department of Energy has approved it to export gas to both Free Trade Agreement and non-Free Trade Agreement countries, according to the FERC statement.
U.S. companies are not allowed to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that the U.S. does not have a free trade agreement (FTA) with, unless they are first authorized by the U.S. Department of Energy.
The Cove Point facility has become the fourth approved LNG export project, after Cheniere's Sabine Pass project in Louisiana, Carib Energy’s facility in Florida, and Sempra Energy’s Cameron LNG facility in Louisiana.
By Ovunc Kutlu
Anadolu Agency