ChevronTexaco Corp., which is proposing to build an offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving and regasification terminal about eight miles off the coast of Baja California, Mexico, has gained approval for the project from Semarnat, Mexico’s environmental agency. The oil major still needs approval from other Mexican regulatory officials, including the Comision Reguladora de Energia, before construction may begin.

The proposed $650 million LNG facility was proposed last year as part of ChevronTexaco’s long-range LNG plans in North America (see Daily GPI, Oct. 31, 2003). The proposed terminal would be constructed using a Gravity Based Structure, a freestanding concrete structure, along with mechanical facilities capable of offloading, storage and regasifying LNG. The terminal will be designed to process 1,400 MMcf/d, with initial processing of approximately 700 MMcf/d. Following approval by all of the required agencies, ChevronTexaco anticipates start-up in the fourth quarter of 2007.

The environmental approval came despite local opposition from Tijuana politicians and California and Mexican environmental groups. Semarnat, which is the equivalent of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said in a environmental impact report earlier this month that the project proposal “is satisfying the growing demand for natural gas and energy in Mexico by importing natural gas for clean combustion.

“The demand for natural gas in Mexico actually is increasingly owed to the construction of new energy generation installations for gas and new systems of distribution of gas. Importing natural gas from global sources will not only satisfy the demand, but also will permit the diversification of sources of supply.”

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