PLAQUEMINES PARISH, La. — Venture Global has placed the first phase of its Plaquemines LNG export facility into commercial operation, marking a major transition for one of Louisiana’s largest energy projects and beginning deliveries to customers under long-term contracts.
The company said commercial operations began Oct. 31, just over 53 months after the final investment decision for Phase 1. The first cargo after the commercial-operation date departed early Nov. 1 and was lifted by Shell.
Plaquemines LNG had already been producing and exporting liquefied natural gas during its commissioning period. The new milestone is different: it moves Phase 1 into its contractual operating stage, when long-term customers begin receiving cargoes under sales and purchase agreements.
Reuters reported that Shell was the first long-term customer to receive a cargo following the transition. Other Phase 1 customers include Orlen, Sinopec, CNOOC Gas & Power and EDF.
The development strengthens Louisiana’s already outsized role in the U.S. LNG industry. Venture Global’s first three projects — Calcasieu Pass, Plaquemines LNG and CP2 LNG — are all located in Louisiana. CP2, in Cameron Parish, is under development and is part of a broader wave of Gulf Coast investment tied to growing global demand for U.S. natural gas.
For Louisiana, the Plaquemines milestone is significant not simply because another LNG facility is producing. Commercial operation means a multibillion-dollar construction project has moved another step toward its long-term role as an operating export asset, supporting marine traffic, natural-gas demand, industrial services and permanent operations along the Mississippi River corridor.
The transition also comes after scrutiny of Venture Global’s contracting practices at its Calcasieu Pass project, where several customers challenged delays in the start of long-term deliveries while cargoes were sold on the spot market during commissioning. Plaquemines is now beginning contracted Phase 1 deliveries on the schedule the company had targeted.
Phase 2 remains under development, with commercial operations expected later. Once both phases are operating, Plaquemines will represent a major component of Louisiana’s LNG export capacity and Venture Global’s expanding Gulf Coast portfolio.
The first long-term cargo therefore represents more than another tanker leaving Louisiana. It is the point at which Phase 1 moves from commissioning into the commercial life the project was built to serve.
Sources
Venture Global — Nov. 1, 2026 announcement
https://investors.ventureglobal.com/news/news-details/2026/Venture-Global-Commences-Commercial-Operations-of-Phase-One-of-Plaquemines-LNG/default.aspx
Reuters — Venture Global begins supplying Plaquemines Phase 1 customers
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/venture-global-begins-supplying-plaquemines-phase-1-customers-under-long-term-2026-11-01/
