Origin Energy Limited (Origin) today confirmed Australia Pacific LNG had just concluded the 90-day operational phase of the two train project finance lenders’ test.

All other elements of the project finance completion tests are on track and Australia Pacific LNG expects that formal certification that they have been satisfied will be provided during the first quarter of FY2018.

When the formal certifications are received the remaining US$3.4 billion of shareholder guarantees relating to Australia Pacific LNG’s US$8.5 billion project finance facility will be formally released.

During the 90-day period, Australia Pacific LNG achieved high operational performance across all key metrics associated with the test. The facility produced on average more than 10 per cent above nameplate capacity with high thermal efficiency and minimal downtime.

Origin CEO, Frank Calabria said, “This outstanding result underscores the quality of Australia Pacific LNG’s resources and facilities, and is a credit to our joint venture partners and in particular, all those people who work tirelessly across the downstream and upstream operations.

“We’re proud of Australia Pacific LNG’s contribution as a major supplier of natural gas to Australia’s east coast, meeting approximately 20 per cent of total annual demand, and in exporting LNG to provide a cleaner source of energy to customers in Asia,” Mr Calabria said.

About Origin Energy

Origin Energy (ASX: ORG) is the leading Australian integrated energy company with market leading positions in energy retailing (approximately 4.2 million customer accounts), power generation (approximately 6,000 MW of capacity owned and contracted) and natural gas production (1,093 PJ of 2P reserves and annual production of 82 PJe). Through Australia Pacific LNG, its incorporated joint venture with ConocoPhillips and Sinopec, Origin is developing Australia’s biggest CSG to LNG project based on the country’s largest 2P CSG reserves base.