MOL invests $300m in landmark U.S. offshore FLNG project after FID

Expected LNG capacity is 4.4 million tons per year.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has confirmed its investment in the Delfin FLNG 1 offshore liquefied natural gas project following a Final Investment Decision (FID) with Delfin Midstream, a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners (part of BlackRock), and Vitol.

Delfin FLNG 1 will be the first floating LNG production facility in the United States and is expected to become the world’s largest FLNG project, with an annual production capacity of 4.4 million tons of LNG. First production is targeted for 2030.

The total project cost is estimated at around $5b, with approximately $1.4b in equity contributions.

MOL will invest about $300m, representing roughly 23% of total equity, making it the first Japanese shipping company to invest in an FLNG project.

The project has secured all required permits and long-term LNG sales agreements with Centrica, Gunvor, Expand Energy, and Vitol.

Samsung Heavy Industries will build the FLNG unit as the project moves into the execution phase.

Feed gas will be sourced from the U.S. mainland and transported via pipeline to an offshore facility located about 40 miles off the Louisiana coast, where it will be liquefied onboard the floating unit and loaded onto LNG carriers.

MOL, which previously invested in Delfin Midstream in 2023, said it will support the project with technical expertise from its LNG shipping, FSRU operations, and ship-to-ship transfer experience as it expands further upstream in the LNG value chain.