With commissioning complete, Bechtel hands over LNG terminal’s train to Cheniere

U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer and exporter Cheniere Energy has achieved substantial completion of the first train (Train 1) of the next development stage of its LNG facility located on the La Quinta Ship Channel, along the north shore of Corpus Christi Bay in Texas.

As the commissioning is complete, the firm in charge of the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) portion of the work–Bechtel–has turned over the care, custody, and control of Train 1 and associated systems to Cheniere.

According to the US firm, the substantial completion of Train 1 at the Corpus Christi liquefaction (CCL) Stage 3 project was achieved on March 16, 2025. This milestone follows the first LNG production from Train 1 achieved in December 2024 and the first cargo load last month.

Jack Fusco, Cheniere’s President and Chief Executive Officer, said: “We remain focused on safely and efficiently bringing the remaining CCL Stage 3 trains online ahead of schedule, providing much-needed new LNG supply to the global market, and creating long-term value for our stakeholders by growing the Corpus Christi platform with disciplined, brownfield growth.”

In June 2022, a final investment decision (FID) was reached to expand CCL’s total nominal capacity as part of the Stage 3 project. This entails adding seven midscale trains with a combined capacity of over 10 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) to the terminal.

Once all seven are substantially complete, the total estimated liquefaction capacity will be over 25 mtpa. Two trains are scheduled to achieve substantial completion in 2025, and the remaining four in 2026.

The U.S. player claims that overall project completion for CCL Stage 3 on January 31, 2025, was 78.3%. More specifically, engineering was 97.6% complete, procurement 97.2%, subcontract work 88.8%, and construction 45.5% complete.

Additionally, Cheniere is developing two more midscale trains with an expected total production capacity of approximately 3 mtpa of LNG next to the CCL Stage 3 project. A positive environmental assessment from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) was received in 2024 and the U.S. player hopes to get all remaining necessary regulatory approvals for the project this year.

A 40-mile intrastate pipeline designed to transport up to 1.7 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), expandable to 2.5 Bcf/d of LNG from the terminus of the Whistler pipeline in Agua Dulce to Cheniere’s plant in Corpus Christi started commercial operations in July 2024.