The deal comes amid expectations of continued American LNG export growth, with three new facilities projected to expand export capacity by about 50 percent.
U.S. companies have finalized sales agreements with Japanese power generation giant JERA Co. Inc. for it to purchase up to 5.5 million tons per year of American LNG, the Department of the Interior (DOI) said in a June 11 statement.
The four 20-year agreements, which are projected to “support more than 50,000 U.S. jobs and add more than $200 billion to U.S. GDP according to S&P Global analysis, underscore President Trump’s efforts to unleash American LNG production and the significant role the U.S. LNG industry plays in strengthening the U.S. economy and bolstering global energy security,” the DOI said.
JERA’s deal with NextDecade Corporation, Commonwealth LNG, Sempra Infrastructure, and Cheniere Marketing LLC involves procuring LNG from the U.S. Gulf Coast.
The finalization of the deal was announced by JERA, the U.S. companies, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, and Secretary of Energy Chris Wright.
In a June 12 statement, JERA said the companies offer LNG at competitive prices and with flexible contract terms. The value of these transactions exceeds JERA’s total equity investment in America, currently $6 billion.
JERA’s existing operations in the United States include LNG procurement contracts for 3.5 million tons per year with Freeport LNG and Cameron LNG, and a 1 million ton per year agreement with Venture Global CP2.
JERA’s recent decision to buy up to 5.5 million tons of LNG annually from the United States is a “message to the world that American LNG is back thanks to President Trump and we’re leading on the world stage,” Burgum said.
“America is no longer begging for foreign energy—we’re producing it cleaner, smarter, better, and more reliably than the rest of the world.”
Under the Trump administration, several steps have been taken to boost America’s energy sector, including supporting LNG exports.
On Feb. 14, President Donald Trump issued an executive order creating the National Energy Dominance Council. The council is tasked with advising the president on “strategies to achieve energy dominance by improving the processes for permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, and transportation across all forms of American energy.”
On May 2, the DOI said it planned to revise an offshore rule from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management that would “massively cut costs and red tape” linked to the current process.
