Excelerate Energy to launch Iraq’s first LNG import terminal in Q2 2027

An offshore LNG terminal built by US-based Excelerate Energy. Photo: Excelerate Energy Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Iraq is seeing rapid on-site progress, as efforts continue to overcome geopolitical challenges and navigation risks associated with the Strait of Hormuz. According to project updates, the field team and the materials required for constructing the terminal infrastructure have arrived in Iraq. Excelerate Energy, the US-based firm implementing the project, anticipates an increase in the pace of work in the upcoming weeks, with construction activities on terminal facilities set to ramp up. The company aims to complete and commission the project during the second quarter of 2027, following a delay in 2026 caused by the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz. Once Iraq begins imports, it will become the sixth Arab nation in history to import LNG—joining Kuwait, Egypt, the UAE, Jordan, and Bahrain. The consequences of the military conflict in the region have caused delays for Iraq’s LNG project, which had originally planned to open in the third quarter of 2026. The delays forced Excelerate Energy to redirect its floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), the Excelerate Acadia, to Jordan for a period of nine months. To avoid disruptions to maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the company plans to utilize an FSRU already stationed in the region, eliminating the need for such a vessel to transit the strait. The company is likely to utilize the FSRU currently stationed in the UAE, known as Express, according to Attaqa news. Excelerate Energy indicated that it is attempting to set up the import of LNG from Gulf countries, a remark that strongly suggests Qatar or the UAE.