‘Permitting milestone’ slides into place for US deepwater crude oil export terminal

Texas GulfLink, an affiliate of Dallas-based Sentinel, has secured a stamp of approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration for its deepwater port license application, bringing a multi-year environmental and technical review saga to an end.

Sentinel Midstream unveiled its plan for the Texas GulfLink deepwater crude oil export terminal near Freeport, Texas in February 2019, envisioning an onshore terminal with up to 18 million barrels of storage, an offshore 42-inch pipeline, and a manned offshore platform to facilitate port operations with two catenary anchor leg single point mooring buoys.

Since then, multiple draft environmental impact statements (EIS) have been published for the project and several public hearings have been held. With the return of President Donald Trump to the White House projects like this one gained traction, as his new term in the office is associated with a pivot toward deregulation, a faster energy permitting process, more oil and gas exploration and production opportunities, and an end to the Biden administration’s LNG export permitting pause for non-free trade agreement (non-FTA) countries.

The Texas GulfLink deepwater crude oil export terminal has now received its record of decision (ROD) from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration, concluding a multi-year environmental and technical review of the project’s application after considering the comments of multiple federal and state agencies and thousands more received from the public throughout the review period.

Jeff Ballard, President and CEO of Sentinel and its subsidiary, Texas GulfLink, highlighted: “This permitting milestone is a testament to the hard work, perseverance, and expertise of the Sentinel team. I also want to thank ABADIE LLC, Miller Strategies, and our counsel, Kean Miller LLP, for their help in achieving this great result for our company. Because of the team’s efforts, Texas GulfLink is now well positioned to capitalize on strong market interest and advance as the premier offshore crude oil export facility in the United States.”

Located approximately 30 miles off Brazoria County along the Texas Gulf Coast, Texas GulfLink’s proposed deepwater crude oil export terminal is designed to cater to very large crude carriers (VLCCs). The terminal is expected to substantially cut costs, improve vessel traffic in crowded U.S. Gulf Coast ship channels, and reduce air emissions while employing vapor recovery technology to enhance its environmental profile. Sentinel claims that Texas GulfLink will further President Trump’s ‘Unleashing American Energy’ executive order, bolstering the export of the United States’ energy supplies.

Commenting on the green light for the project, Sean P. Duffy, U.S. Transportation Secretary called the ROD “a declaration that American energy will fuel not just our own economy, but the global market—on our terms.”  The ROD “opens the floodgates for American oil exports, putting our producers in the driver’s seat and ensuring that the world looks to the United States—not foreign adversaries—for energy supply,” emphasized Duffy.

Furthermore, Sentinel has confirmed its engagement with customers and key stakeholders, used to promote integrated market solutions. The company believes Texas GulfLink is “uniquely positioned” amongst its industry peers, as it is perceived to be the only independent deepwater export terminal project, offering shippers tailored commercial solutions with “competitive” market rates and terms.

“Texas GulfLink will immediately turn its attention to satisfying the license conditions and is eager to work with the U.S. Maritime Administration, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Trump Administration, to bring this transformative project to fruition. The approval is well timed to capitalize on President Trump’s stated goal of unleashing the full power of America’s domestic energy supply,” underlined Sentinel.