January 23, 2024 [LNG Prime]- The US Port of Corpus Christi in Texas set a new record in annual tonnage during 2023, including for liquefied natural gas (LNG) volumes.

According to a statement released on Thursday, more than 200 million tons of goods moved in 2023 through the Corpus Christi Ship Channel for the first time in its history.

The 203 million tons moved in 2023 was an 8.1 percent increase from the prior year, and the new high mark primarily can be attributed to a jump in crude oil exports to 126.1 million tons in 2023, a 12.5 percent increase compared to 2022.

Moreover, the port also saw a nearly 13.5 percent increase in agricultural commodities to a little over 2.2 million tons, as well as a slight increase in refined products to 42.5 million tons.

A record volume of LNG – 16.3 million tons – moved through the Corpus Christi Ship Channel in 2023, the port said.

LNG volumes rose 81.2 percent in 2021, reaching 15.7 million tons. The port previously said that LNG volumes increased 3.5 percent in 2022 compared to the year before.

Corpus Christi expansion

These volumes will grow in the future as Cheniere’s Corpus Christi liquefaction facility is currently undergoing a capacity expansion.

The Corpus Christi terminal currently consists of three operational trains with each having a capacity of about 5 million tonnes per annum.

Cheniere completed the first train in February 2019 followed by the second in August the same year, while Bechtel handed over operational control of the third train in March 2021.

In June 2022, Cheniere took a final investment decision on the Corpus Christi Stage 3 expansion project worth about $8 billion, and Bechtel officially started construction on the project in October the same year.

The project includes building seven midscale trains, each with an expected liquefaction capacity of about 1.49 mtpa.

Cheniere’s CEO Jack Fusco said in August last year that the company is expecting to complete the expansion phase ahead of schedule.

He said in November that construction on Corpus Christi Stage 3 “continues to progress ahead of plan, and I am optimistic first LNG production from train 1 will occur by the end of 2024.”

Cheniere’s unit Corpus Christi Liquefaction said in the November construction report filed with the US FERC that overall project completion for the Stage 3 project was 48.8 percent.

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