by Arsenio Toledo at SHTF.News
The administration of President Joe Biden is preventing America’s second-largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant from restarting operations after it was forced to shut down due to a fire in June over alleged “risks to public safety.”
On June 8, an unexplained explosion knocked out Freeport LNG’s plant in Quintana, Texas, after the blast caused a fire that spread through a large part of the plant. This facility is responsible for bringing America over two billion cubic feet of LNG per day and 16.5 million tons of LNG per year. (Related: Freeport Liquefied Natural Gas terminal down for the ENTIRE YEAR due to pipe explosion.)
“Continued operation of Freeport’s LNG export facility without corrective measures may pose an integrity risk to public safety, property or the environment,” wrote the Department of Transportation‘s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in its preliminary report.
The report stated that the explosion was caused by a safety valve that led an 18-inch pipe with inner and outer stainless steel layers to overpressurize. A 300-foot section of pipe burst due to the pressure, releasing about 120,000 cubic feet of LNG and methane into the facility and causing the explosion and the fire.
The PHMSA claimed a more thorough investigation into what caused the disaster is needed. This root cause analysis will delay a planned partial restart of the plant for 90 to 120 days and could also significantly delay a full restart.