In the next few days, Petrobras will receive its first shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) produced in the American portion of the Gulf of Mexico. The LNG tanker Asia Vision was loaded up today (February 24) at the Sabine Pass Terminal in Louisiana with 160,000 m³ of LNG, equivalent to 96 million m³ of natural gas. The fuel will be taken to Petrobras’ regasification terminal in All Saints’ Bay, Bahia.

The commercial operation involves Cheniere, an American company that is building seven natural gas liquefaction facilities in the Gulf of Mexico. This is the first shipment of LNG produced by the company and also the first shipment of LNG produced in the continental United States. Following regasification at the terminal in Bahia, the fuel will be pumped into Petrobras’ network of gas pipelines to supply Brazil’s domestic market, mainly for use in thermal power plants.

The natural gas was processed and liquefied for shipment by Cheniere at an industrial facility built to make use of the abundant gas in the U.S. market following the shale gas revolution. Through this purchase, Petrobras is diversifying its portfolio of suppliers, making Brazil’s supply of natural gas more flexible and secure, and establishing an important commercial partnership in the Atlantic Basin.