Freeport LNG expects partial production restart this week after Hurricane Beryl

Freeport LNG said July 15 it expects to resume partial production this week as it targets a "phased restart" of liquefaction operations a week after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas.

The exporter was "completing initial repairs on the damage sustained to our fin fan air coolers in the hurricane and anticipate restarting the first train this week," Freeport spokesperson Heather Browne said in an email.

Fin fan air coolers are used to dissipate heat at liquefaction plants, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights LNG analyst Theo Kassuga. They need ample air supply to operate, so they are often more exposed to weather events than other pieces of equipment.

After restarting production on the first liquefaction unit, Freeport plans to restart the remaining two trains "shortly thereafter," Browne said.

"Production levels after restart will be at reduced rates for a period of time as we continue repairs while operating the facility," Browne said. "Production will steadily ramp up to full rates as these repairs are completed."

The update followed Freeport power supplier CenterPoint Energy reporting over the weekend it had restored power to the area including the LNG terminal on Quintana Island in hard-hit Brazoria County, south of Houston. The restart preparations at the facility required power.

Freeport shut down all three trains at the 15 million mt/year terminal on July 7 in preparation of Hurricane Beryl making landfall a day later.

Feedgas deliveries to the Freeport terminal remained minimal July 15, pushing overall US feedgas demand to about 11.1 Bcf/d, having remained at similar levels over the past week, according to Commodity Insights data, based on nominations for the morning cycle that could later be revised. A day before the Freeport operator took the plant offline, the Texas facility received nearly 1.9 Bcf/d, or more than 80% of the peak observed deliveries to the terminal.

Hurricane Beryl made landfall as a Category 1 storm early July 8 near Matagorda, Texas, which is south of the facility, with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph before weakening as the storm progressed inland.

in the region were widespread.

By July 15, CenterPoint reported it had restored power to over 2 million customers and expected power to be restored to 98% of customers by the end of the day July 17. The utility said outages had impacted more than 2.2 million customers at its peak across the company's service area, which includes Houston.

Global LNG markets have been unfazed by the recent Freeport outage amid bearish fundamentals, with the Platts DES JKM for August deliveries reaching a seven-week low July 10 at $11.673/MMBtu. Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, last assessed JKM lower at $11.485/MMBtu May 21.

Platts assessed DES JKM for August deliveries at $12.106/MMBtu July 15.

Atlantic LNG prices have seen a similar trend, with the Platts DES Northwest Europe Marker for August assessed at $9.67/MMBtu July 10, NWE's lowest level since May 17, when it was assessed at $9.664/MMBtu.

DES NWE for August deliveries was assessed at $9.98/MMBtu July 15.

The Platts Gulf Coast Marker for US FOB cargoes loading 30-60 days forward was assessed at $9.20/MMBtu July 15, down 14 cents/MMBtu on the day.