Cheniere Energy Partners LP
For the period ended Dec 31, 2023. Filed Feb 22, 2024.
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A company's yearly report to the SEC, with audited financial statements. It is the fullest account a company gives of its business, its finances and the risks it sees.
FY2023 · Filed Feb 22, 2024
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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023
or
☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from to
Commission file number 001-33366
Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 20-5913059 |
|---|---|
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
845 Texas Avenue, Suite 1250
Houston, Texas 77002
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)
(713)375-5000
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol | Name of each exchange on which registered |
|---|---|---|
| Common Units Representing Limited Partner Interests | CQP | New York Stock Exchange |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☒ | Accelerated filer | ☐ |
| Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | ☐ |
| Emerging growth company | ☐ | ||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.☒
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements.☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b).☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes☐ No ☒
The aggregate market value of the registrant’s common units held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $1.8 billion as of June 30, 2023.
As of February 16, 2024, the registrant had 484,040,623 common units outstanding.
Documents incorporated by reference: None
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| PART I | |
|---|---|
| Items 1. and 2. Business and Properties | 4 |
| Item 1A. Risk Factors | 13 |
| Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments | 27 |
| Item 1C. Cybersecurity | 28 |
| Item 3. Legal Proceedings | 29 |
| Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosure | 29 |
| PART II | |
| Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Unitholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities | 30 |
| Item 6. [Reserved] | 30 |
| Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations | 31 |
| Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk | 46 |
| Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data | 47 |
| Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure | 82 |
| Item 9A. Controls and Procedures | 82 |
| Item 9B. Other Information | 82 |
| Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions That Prevent Inspections | 82 |
| PART III | |
| Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers of Our General Partner and Corporate Governance | 83 |
| Item 11. Executive Compensation | 88 |
| Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management, and Related Unitholder Matters | 91 |
| Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence | 93 |
| Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services | 94 |
| PART IV | |
| Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules | 96 |
| Signatures | 112 |
i
DEFINITIONS
As used in this annual report, the terms listed below have the following meanings:
Common Industry and Other Terms
| ASU | Accounting Standards Update |
|---|---|
| Bcf | billion cubic feet |
| Bcf/d | billion cubic feet per day |
| Bcf/yr | billion cubic feet per year |
| Bcfe | billion cubic feet equivalent |
| DOE | U.S. Department of Energy |
| EPC | engineering, procurement and construction |
| ESG | environmental, social and governance |
| FASB | Financial Accounting Standards Board |
| FERC | Federal Energy Regulatory Commission |
| FID | final investment decision |
| FOB | free-on-board |
| FTA countries | countries with which the United States has a free trade agreement providing for national treatment for trade in natural gas |
| GAAP | generally accepted accounting principles in the United States |
| Henry Hub | the final settlement price (in U.S. dollars per MMBtu) for the New York Mercantile Exchange’s Henry Hub natural gas futures contract for the month in which a relevant cargo’s delivery window is scheduled to begin |
| IPM agreements | integrated production marketing agreements in which the gas producer sells to us gas on a global LNG or natural gas index price, less a fixed liquefaction fee, shipping and other costs |
| LIBOR | London Interbank Offered Rate |
| LNG | liquefied natural gas, a product of natural gas that, through a refrigeration process, has been cooled to a liquid state, which occupies a volume that is approximately 1/600th of its gaseous state |
| MMBtu | million British thermal units; one British thermal unit measures the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit |
| mtpa | million tonnes per annum |
| non-FTA countries | countries with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement providing for national treatment for trade in natural gas and with which trade is permitted |
| SEC | U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission |
| SOFR | Secured Overnight Financing Rate |
| SPA | LNG sale and purchase agreement |
| TBtu | trillion British thermal units; one British thermal unit measures the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit |
| Train | an industrial facility comprised of a series of refrigerant compressor loops used to cool natural gas into LNG |
| TUA | terminal use agreement |
Abbreviated Legal Entity Structure
The following diagram depicts our abbreviated legal entity structure as of December 31, 2023, including our ownership of certain subsidiaries, and the references to these entities used in this annual report:
Unless the context requires otherwise, references to “CQP,” the “Partnership,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. and its consolidated subsidiaries.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT
REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This annual report contains certain statements that are, or may be deemed to be, “forward-looking statements.” All statements, other than statements of historical or present facts or conditions, included herein or incorporated herein by reference are “forward-looking statements.” Included among “forward-looking statements” are, among other things:
statements regarding our ability to pay distributions to our unitholders;
statements regarding our expected receipt of cash distributions from SPLNG, SPL or CTPL;
statements that we expect to commence or complete construction of our proposed LNG terminal, liquefaction facility, pipeline facility or other projects, or any expansions or portions thereof, by certain dates, or at all;
statements regarding future levels of domestic and international natural gas production, supply or consumption or future levels of LNG imports into or exports from North America and other countries worldwide or purchases of natural gas, regardless of the source of such information, or the transportation or other infrastructure or demand for and prices related to natural gas, LNG or other hydrocarbon products;
statements regarding any financing transactions or arrangements, or our ability to enter into such transactions;
statements regarding our future sources of liquidity and cash requirements;
statements relating to the construction of our Trains, including statements concerning the engagement of any EPC contractor or other contractor and the anticipated terms and provisions of any agreement with any EPC or other contractor, and anticipated costs related thereto;
statements regarding any SPA or other agreement to be entered into or performed substantially in the future, including any revenues anticipated to be received and the anticipated timing thereof, and statements regarding the amounts of total LNG regasification, natural gas liquefaction or storage capacities that are, or may become, subject to contracts;
statements regarding counterparties to our commercial contracts, construction contracts and other contracts;
statements regarding our planned development and construction of additional Trains, including the financing of such Trains;
statements that our Trains, when completed, will have certain characteristics, including amounts of liquefaction capacities;
statements regarding our business strategy, our strengths, our business and operation plans or any other plans, forecasts, projections, or objectives, including anticipated revenues, capital expenditures, maintenance and operating costs and cash flows, any or all of which are subject to change;
statements regarding legislative, governmental, regulatory, administrative or other public body actions, approvals, requirements, permits, applications, filings, investigations, proceedings or decisions;
any other statements that relate to non-historical or future information; and
other factors described in Item 1A. Risk Factors in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
All of these types of statements, other than statements of historical or present facts or conditions, are forward-looking statements. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “achieve,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “pursue,” “target,” the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology. The forward-looking statements contained in this annual report are largely based on our expectations, which reflect estimates and assumptions made by our management. These estimates and assumptions reflect our best judgment based on currently known market conditions and other factors. Although we believe that such estimates are reasonable, they are inherently uncertain and involve a number of risks and uncertainties beyond our control. In addition, assumptions may prove to be inaccurate. We caution that the forward-looking statements contained in this annual report are not guarantees of future performance and that such statements may not be realized or the forward-looking statements or events may not occur. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated or implied in forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors described in this annual report and in the other reports and other information that we file with the SEC. All forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these risk factors. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and other than as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement or provide reasons why actual results may differ, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
The text of this filing, as the company filed it with the SEC, without its images or exhibits. This is not investment advice.