Liberty Bay weighs Argentina or Mexico for $1bn floating LNG project

Published: 2026-05-12 05:40:08 ET NFE

Published on 05/12/2026 at 05:40 am EDT

US-based Liberty Bay FLNG is finalising plans for a $1bn floating liquefied natural gas project that could be built in either Argentina or Mexico, targeting start-up in late 2029 or early 2030, as the company seeks to capitalise on rising global demand for LNG, S&P Global reported.

The proposed facility would have capacity of 1.4 mn metric tonnes per year and would be developed using a single newly built jack-up rig installed on a fixed offshore platform, according to chief executive Deepak Bawa.

The company said the design aims to avoid the delays and cost overruns experienced by the Altamira LNG export terminal in northern Mexico, a similar offshore project launched in 2024.

Bawa, a former managing director at New Fortress Energy, said Liberty Bay expects to announce technology agreements and project partners this month, while a construction permit application is planned for early 2027.

“It’s not a first-of-a-kind thing, and that makes it way stronger,” Bawa said. “We are just trying to be practical and start with one small project, which has already been done before.”

The project could be completed around 30 months after a final investment decision, and the company is considering sites near Altamira in Mexico and near the Southern LNG development off Argentina’s Río Negro coast.

Liberty Bay said the relatively small scale of the project could help secure financing and offtake agreements more easily, with talks already under way with potential buyers in India and Europe.

The company is pursuing locations outside the United States to avoid longer permitting timelines, while also offering buyers additional supply diversification amid disruptions linked to conflict in the Middle East.

According to analysts cited by S&P Global, global floating LNG capacity is expected to triple by the 2040s to around 45 mn tonnes annually, accounting for about 8% of total liquefaction capacity additions by the end of this decade.

Benchmark LNG prices remain elevated, with the Platts June JKM price for deliveries to northeast Asia assessed at $16.951 per million British thermal units on May 8, nearly 60% above levels seen before the regional conflict intensified.