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Cheniere Energy Partners LP

For the period ended Dec 31, 2023. Filed Feb 22, 2024.

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About this filing

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

CQP$58.70+2.3%Stored close · as of Nov 9, 2026

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Contents

Items 1 and 2. BUSINESS AND PROPERTIES

General

We are a publicly traded Delaware limited partnership formed in 2006 by Cheniere. We provide clean, secure and affordable LNG to integrated energy companies, utilities and energy trading companies around the world. We aspire to conduct our business in a safe and responsible manner, delivering a reliable, competitive and integrated source of LNG to our customers.

LNG is natural gas (methane) in liquid form. The LNG we produce is shipped all over the world, turned back into natural gas (called “regasification”) and then transported via pipeline to homes and businesses and used as an energy source that is essential for heating, cooking, other industrial uses and back up for intermittent energy sources. Natural gas is a cleaner-burning, abundant and affordable source of energy. When LNG is converted back to natural gas, it can be used instead of coal, which reduces the amount of pollution traditionally produced from burning fossil fuels, like sulfur dioxide and particulate matter that enters the air we breathe. Additionally, compared to coal, it produces significantly fewer carbon emissions. By liquefying natural gas, we are able to reduce its volume by 600 times so that we can load it onto special LNG carriers designed to keep the LNG cold and in liquid form for efficient transport overseas.

We own a natural gas liquefaction and export facility located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana at Sabine Pass (the“Sabine Pass LNG Terminal”), one of the largest LNG production facilities in the world, which has six operational Trains, for a total production capacity of approximately 30 mtpa of LNG (the“Liquefaction Project”). The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal also has operational regasification facilities that include five LNG storage tanks with aggregate capacity of approximately 17 Bcfe, vaporizers with regasification capacity of approximately 4 Bcf/d as well as three marine berths, two of which can accommodate vessels with nominal capacity of up to 266,000 cubic meters and the third berth which can accommodate vessels with nominal capacity of up to 200,000 cubic meters. We also own a 94-mile natural gas supply pipeline through our subsidiary, CTPL, that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal to several interstate and intrastate pipelines (the“Creole Trail Pipeline”).

Our long-term customer arrangements form the foundation of our business and provide us with significant, stable, long-term cash flows. We have contracted most of our anticipated production capacity under SPAs, in which our customers are generally required to pay a fixed fee with respect to the contracted volumes irrespective of their election to cancel or suspend deliveries of LNG cargoes, and under IPM agreements, in which the gas producer sells natural gas to us on a global LNG or natural gas index price, less a fixed liquefaction fee, shipping and other costs. The SPAs also have a variable fee component, which is generally structured to cover the cost of natural gas purchases, transportation and liquefaction fuel consumed to produce LNG. Since we procure most of our feedstock for LNG production from the U.S., the structure of these contracts helps limit our exposure to fluctuations in U.S. natural gas prices. Through our SPAs and IPM agreement, we have contracted approximately 85% of the total anticipated production from the Liquefaction Project with approximately 14 years of weighted average remaining life as of December 31, 2023, excluding volumes that are contractually subject to additional liquefaction capacity beyond what is currently in construction or operation.

We remain focused on safety, operational excellence and customer satisfaction. Increasing demand for LNG has allowed us to expand our liquefaction infrastructure in a financially disciplined manner. We have increased available liquefaction capacity at our Liquefaction Project as a result of debottlenecking and other optimization projects. We believe these factors provide a foundation for additional growth in our portfolio of customer contracts in the future. We hold a significant land position at the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, which provides opportunity for further liquefaction capacity expansion. In May 2023, certain of our subsidiaries entered the pre-filing review process with the FERC under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) for an expansion adjacent to the Liquefaction Project with a potential production capacity of up to approximately 20 mtpa of total LNG capacity, inclusive of estimated debottlenecking opportunities (the“SPL Expansion Project”). The development of the SPL Expansion Project or other projects, including infrastructure projects in support of natural gas supply and LNG demand, will require, among other things, acceptable commercial and financing arrangements before a positive FID is made.

Our Business Strategy

Our primary business strategy is to develop, construct and operate assets to meet our long-term customers’ energy demands. We plan to implement our strategy by:

safely, efficiently and reliably operating and maintaining our assets, including our Trains;

procuring natural gas and pipeline transport capacity to our facility;

commencing commercial delivery for our long-term SPA customers, of which we have initiated for nine of eleven third party long-term SPA customers as of December 31, 2023;

continuing to secure long-term customer contracts to support our planned expansion, including the FID of potential expansion projects;

maximizing the production of LNG to serve our customers and generating steady and stable revenues and operating cash flows;

optimizing the Liquefaction Project by leveraging existing infrastructure;

maintaining a prudent and cost-effective capital structure; and

strategically identifying actionable and economic environmental solutions.

Our Business

Below is a discussion of our operations. For further discussion of our contractual obligations and cash requirements related to these operations, refer to Liquidity and Capital Resources in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.

Sabine Pass LNG Terminal

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, as described above under the caption General, is one of the largest LNG production facilities in the world with six Trains, five storage tanks and three marine berths. Additionally, in May 2023, certain of our subsidiaries entered the pre-filing review process with the FERC under the NEPA for the SPL Expansion Project.

The following summarizes the volumes of natural gas for which we have received approvals from FERC to site, construct and operate the Trains at the Liquefaction Project and the orders we have received from the DOE authorizing the export of domestically produced LNG by vessel from the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal through December 31, 2050:

FERC Approved VolumeDOE Approved Volume
(in Bcf/yr)(in mtpa)(in Bcf/yr)(in mtpa)
FTA countries1,661.94331,661.9433
Non-FTA countries1,661.94331,661.9433

Natural Gas Supply, Transportation and Storage

SPL has secured natural gas feedstock for the Liquefaction Project through long-term natural gas supply agreements, including an IPM agreement. SPL Stage V has also entered into an IPM agreement to supply the SPL Expansion Project, subject to Cheniere making a positive FID on the first train of the SPL Expansion Project. Additionally, to ensure that SPL is able to transport natural gas feedstock to the Liquefaction Project and manage inventory levels, it has entered into firm pipeline transportation and storage contracts with third parties and CTPL.

Regasification Facilities

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, as described above under the caption General, has operational regasification capacity of approximately 4 Bcf/d and aggregate LNG storage capacity of approximately 17 Bcfe. SPLNG has a long-term, third party TUA for 1 Bcf/d with TotalEnergies Gas & Power North America, Inc.(“TotalEnergies”), under which TotalEnergies is required to pay fixed monthly fees, whether or not it uses the regasification capacity it has reserved. Prior to its cancellation effective December 31, 2022, SPLNG also had a TUA for 1 Bcf/d with Chevron U.S.A. Inc. (“Chevron”). Approximately 2

Bcf/d of the remaining capacity has been reserved under a TUA by SPL, which also has a partial TUA assignment agreement with TotalEnergies, as further described in Note 13—Revenues of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

Customers

The concentration of our customer credit risk in excess of 10% of total revenues was as follows:

Percentage of Total Revenues from External Customers
Year Ended December 31,
202320222021
BG Gulf Coast LNG, LLC and affiliates23%22%24%
Korea Gas Corporation16%15%17%
GAIL (India) Limited16%15%17%
Naturgy LNG GOM, Limited15%15%16%
TotalEnergies Gas & Power North America, Inc.11%10%11%

All of the above customers contribute to our LNG revenues through SPA contracts.

Additional information regarding our customer contracts can be found in Liquidity and Capital Resources in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and Note 17—Customer Concentration of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

Governmental Regulation

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and the Creole Trail Pipeline are subject to extensive regulation under federal, state and local statutes, rules, regulations and laws. These laws require that we engage in consultations with appropriate federal and state agencies and that we obtain and maintain applicable permits and other authorizations. These rigorous regulatory requirements increase the cost of construction and operation, and failure to comply with such laws could result in substantial penalties and/or loss of necessary authorizations.

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

The design, construction, operation, maintenance and expansion of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, the import or export of LNG and the purchase and transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce through the Creole Trail Pipeline are highly regulated activities subject to the jurisdiction of the FERC pursuant to the Natural Gas Act of 1938, as amended (the“NGA”). Under the NGA, the FERC’s jurisdiction generally extends to the transportation of natural gas in interstate commerce, to the sale for resale of natural gas in interstate commerce, to natural gas companies engaged in such transportation or sale and to the construction, operation, maintenance and expansion of LNG terminals and interstate natural gas pipelines.

The FERC’s authority to regulate interstate natural gas pipelines and the services that they provide generally includes regulation of:

rates and charges, and terms and conditions for natural gas transportation, storage and related services;

the certification and construction of new facilities and modification of existing facilities;

the extension and abandonment of services and facilities;

the administration of accounting and financial reporting regulations, including the maintenance of accounts and records;

the acquisition and disposition of facilities;

the initiation and discontinuation of services; and

various other matters.

Under the NGA, our pipeline is not permitted to unduly discriminate or grant undue preference as to rates or the terms and conditions of service to any shipper, including its own marketing affiliate. Those rates, terms and conditions must be public, and on file with the FERC. In contrast to pipeline regulation, the FERC does not require LNG terminal owners to provide open-access services at cost-based or regulated rates. Although the provisions that codified the FERC’s policy in this area expired on January 1, 2015, we see no indication that the FERC intends to change its policy in this area. On February 18, 2022, the FERC updated its 1999 Policy Statement on certification of new interstate natural gas facilities and the framework for the FERC’s decision-making process, modifying the standards that the FERC uses to evaluate applications to include, among other things, reasonably foreseeable greenhouse gas emissions (“GHG”) that may be attributable to the project and the project’s impact on environmental justice communities. On March 24, 2022, the FERC rescinded the Policy Statement, re-issued it as a draft and it remains pending. At this time, we do not expect it to have a material adverse effect on our operations.

We are permitted to make sales of natural gas for resale in interstate commerce pursuant to a blanket marketing certificate granted by the FERC with the issuance of our Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to our marketing affiliates. Our sales of natural gas will be affected by the availability, terms and cost of pipeline transportation. As noted above, the price and terms of access to pipeline transportation are subject to extensive federal and state regulation.

In order to site, construct and operate the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, we received and are required to maintain authorizations from the FERC under Section 3 of the NGA as well as other material governmental and regulatory approvals and permits. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (the“EPAct”) amended Section 3 of the NGA to establish or clarify the FERC’s exclusive authority to approve or deny an application for the siting, construction, expansion or operation of LNG terminals, unless specifically provided otherwise in the EPAct, amendments to the NGA. For example, nothing in the EPAct amendments to the NGA were intended to affect otherwise applicable law related to any other federal agency’s authorities or responsibilities related to LNG terminals or those of a state acting under federal law.

In May 2023, certain of our subsidiaries entered the pre-filing review process with the FERC under the NEPA for the SPL Expansion Project.

The FERC’s Standards of Conduct apply to interstate pipelines that conduct transmission transactions with an affiliate that engages in natural gas marketing functions. The general principles of the FERC Standards of Conduct are: (1) independent functioning, which requires transmission function employees to function independently of marketing function employees; (2) no-conduit rule, which prohibits passing transmission function information to marketing function employees; and (3) transparency, which imposes posting requirements to detect undue preference due to the improper disclosure of non-public transmission function information. We have established the required policies, procedures and training to comply with the FERC’s Standards of Conduct.

All of our FERC construction, operation, reporting, accounting and other regulated activities are subject to audit by the FERC, which may conduct routine or special inspections and issue data requests designed to ensure compliance with FERC rules, regulations, policies and procedures. The FERC’s jurisdiction under the NGA allows it to impose civil and criminal penalties for any violations of the NGA and any rules, regulations or orders of the FERC up to approximately $1.3 million per day per violation, including any conduct that violates the NGA’s prohibition against market manipulation.

Several other governmental and regulatory approvals and permits are required throughout the life of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and the Creole Trail Pipeline. In addition, our FERC orders require us to comply with certain ongoing conditions, reporting obligations and maintain other regulatory agency approvals throughout the life of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and Creole Trail Pipeline. For example, throughout the life of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and the Creole Trail Pipeline, we are subject to regular reporting requirements to the FERC, the Department of Transportation’s (“DOT”) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”) and applicable federal and state regulatory agencies regarding the operation and maintenance of our facilities. To date, we have been able to obtain and maintain required approvals as needed, and the need for these approvals and reporting obligations has not materially affected our construction or operations.

DOE Export Licenses

The DOE has authorized the export of domestically produced LNG by vessel from the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal, as discussed in Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and Expansion Project. Although it is not expected to occur, the loss of an export authorization could be a force majeure event under our SPAs.

Under Section 3 of the NGA, applications for exports of natural gas to FTA countries, which allow for national treatment for trade in natural gas, are “deemed to be consistent with the public interest” and shall be granted by the DOE without “modification or delay.” FTA countries currently recognized by the DOE for exports of LNG include Australia, Bahrain,

Canada, Chile, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco, Nicaragua, Oman, Panama, Peru, Republic of Korea and Singapore. FTAs with Israel and Costa Rica do not require national treatment for trade in natural gas. Applications for export of LNG to non-FTA countries are considered by the DOE in a notice and comment proceeding whereby the public and other interveners are provided the opportunity to comment and may assert that such authorization would not be consistent with the public interest. In January 2024, the Biden Administration announced a temporary pause on pending decisions on exports of LNG to non-FTA countries until the DOE can update the underlying analyses for authorizations. We do not believe such a pause will have a material adverse effect on our business, contracts, financial condition, operating results, cash flow, or liquidity. We have no projects pending non-FTA export approval with the DOE at this time, although we would anticipate seeking non-FTA export authorization from the DOE on the SPL Expansion Project in the future, having entered the pre-filing review process with the FERC in May 2023. See Sabine Pass LNG Terminal section above for FERC and DOE approved volumes on our existing Liquefaction Project.

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal as well as the Creole Trail Pipeline are subject to regulation by PHMSA. PHMSA is authorized by the applicable pipeline safety laws to establish minimum safety standards for certain pipelines and LNG facilities. The regulatory standards PHMSA has established are applicable to the design, installation, testing, construction, operation, maintenance and management of natural gas and hazardous liquid pipeline facilities and LNG facilities that affect interstate or foreign commerce. PHMSA has also established training, worker qualification and reporting requirements.

PHMSA performs inspections of pipeline and LNG facilities and has authority to undertake enforcement actions, including issuance of civil penalties up to approximately $266,000 per day per violation, with a maximum administrative civil penalty of approximately $2.7 million for any related series of violations.

Other Governmental Permits, Approvals and Authorizations

Construction and operation of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal requires additional permits, orders, approvals and consultations to be issued by various federal and state agencies, including the DOT, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”), U.S. Department of Commerce, National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the“EPA”), U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (the“LDEQ”).

The USACE issues its permits under the authority of the Clean Water Act (“CWA”) (Section 404) and the Rivers and Harbors Act (Section 10). The EPA administers the Clean Air Act (“CAA”), and has delegated authority to the LDEQ to issue the Title V Operating Permit and the Prevention of Significant Deterioration Permit. These two permits are issued by the LDEQ for the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and CTPL.

Commodity Futures Trading Commission(“CFTC”)

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the“Dodd-Frank Act”) amended the Commodity Exchange Act to provide for federal regulation of the over-the-counter derivatives market and entities, such as us, that participate in those markets. The CFTC has enacted a number of regulations pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, including the speculative position limit rules. Given the enactment of the speculative position limit rules, as well as the impact of other rules and regulations under the Dodd-Frank Act, the impact of such rules and regulations on our business continues to be uncertain, but is not expected to be material.

As required by the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFTC and federal banking regulators also adopted rules requiring swap dealers (as defined in the Dodd-Frank Act), including those that are regulated financial institutions, to collect initial and/or variation margin with respect to uncleared swaps from their counterparties that are financial end users, registered swap dealers or major swap participants. These rules do not require collection of margin from non-financial-entity end users who qualify for the end user exception from the mandatory clearing requirement or from non-financial end users or certain other counterparties in certain instances. We qualify as a non-financial-entity end user with respect to the swaps that we enter into to hedge our commercial risks.

Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Act, the CFTC adopted additional anti-manipulation and anti-disruptive trading practices regulations that prohibit, among other things, manipulative, deceptive or fraudulent schemes or material misrepresentation in the futures, options, swaps and cash markets. In addition, separate from the Dodd-Frank Act, our use of futures and options on commodities is subject to the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations, as well as the rules of futures exchanges on which any of these instruments are executed. Should we violate any of these laws and regulations, we could be subject to a CFTC or an exchange enforcement action and material penalties, possibly resulting in changes in the rates we can charge.

Environmental Regulation

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal is subject to various federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment and natural resources. These environmental laws and regulations can affect the cost and output of operations and may impose substantial penalties for non-compliance and substantial liabilities for pollution, as further described in the risk factor Existing and future safety, environmental and similar laws and governmental regulations could result in increased compliance costs or additional operating costs or construction costs and restrictions in Risks Relating to Regulations within Item 1A. Risk Factors. Many of these laws and regulations, such as those noted below, restrict or prohibit impacts to the environment or the types, quantities and concentration of substances that can be released into the environment and can lead to substantial administrative, civil and criminal fines and penalties for non-compliance.

Clean Air Act

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal is subject to the federal CAA and comparable state and local laws. We may be required to incur certain capital expenditures over the next several years for air pollution control equipment in connection with maintaining or obtaining permits and approvals addressing air emission-related issues. However, we do not believe any such requirements will have a material adverse effect on our operations, or the construction and operations at the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal.

On February 28, 2022, the EPA removed a stay of formaldehyde standards in the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (“NESHAP”) Subpart YYYY for stationary combustion turbines located at major sources of hazardous air pollutant (“HAP”) emissions. Owners and operators of lean remix gas-fired turbines and diffusion flame gas-fired turbines at major sources of HAP that were installed after January 14, 2003 were required to comply with NESHAP Subpart YYYY by March 9, 2022 and demonstrate initial compliance with those requirements by September 5, 2022. We do not believe that the construction and operations of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal will be materially and adversely affected by such regulatory actions.

We are supportive of regulations reducing GHG emissions over time. Since 2009, the EPA has promulgated and finalized multiple GHG emissions regulations related to reporting and reductions of GHG emissions from our facilities. On December 2, 2023, the EPA issued final rules to reduce methane and volatile organic compounds (“VOC”) emissions from new, existing and modified emission sources in the oil and gas sector. These regulations will require monitoring of methane and VOC emissions at our compressor stations. We do not believe such regulations will have a material adverse effect on our operations, financial condition, or results of operations.

From time to time, Congress has considered proposed legislation directed at reducing GHG emissions. On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed H.R. 5376(P.L. 117-169), the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) which includes a charge on methane emissions above a certain methane intensity threshold for facilities that report their GHG emissions under the EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reporting Program Part 98 regulations. The charge starts at $900 per metric ton of methane in 2024, $1,200 per metric ton in 2025, and increasing to $1,500 per metric ton in 2026 and beyond. In January 2024, the EPA issued a proposed rule to impose and collect the methane emissions charge authorized under the IRA. We do not believe the methane charge to have a material adverse effect on our operations, financial condition or results of operations.

Coastal Zone Management Act (“CZMA”)

The siting and construction of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal within the coastal zone is subject to the requirements of the CZMA. The CZMA is administered by the states (in Louisiana, by the Department of Natural Resources). This program is implemented to ensure that impacts to coastal areas are consistent with the intent of the CZMA to manage the coastal areas.

Clean Water Act

The Sabine Pass LNG Terminal is subject to the federal CWA and analogous state and local laws. The CWA imposes strict controls on the discharge of pollutants into the navigable waters of the United States, including discharges of wastewater and storm water runoff and fill/discharges into waters of the United States. Permits must be obtained prior to discharging pollutants into state and federal waters. The CWA is administered by the EPA, the USACE and by the states (in Louisiana, by the LDEQ). The CWA regulatory programs, including the Section 404 dredge and fill permitting program and Section 401 water quality certification program carried out by the states, are frequently the subject of shifting agency interpretations and legal challenges, which at times can result in permitting delays.

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”)

The federal RCRA and comparable state statutes govern the generation, handling and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes and require corrective action for releases into the environment. When such wastes are generated in connection with the operations of our facilities, we are subject to regulatory requirements affecting the handling, transportation, treatment, storage and disposal of such wastes.

Protection of Species, Habitats and Wetlands

Various federal and state statutes, such as the Endangered Species Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the CWA and the Oil Pollution Act, prohibit certain activities that may adversely affect endangered or threatened animal, fish and plant species and/or their designated habitats, wetlands, or other natural resources. If the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal or the Creole Trail Pipeline adversely affect a protected species or its habitat, we may be required to develop and follow a plan to avoid those impacts. In that case, siting, construction or operations may be delayed or restricted and cause us to incur increased costs.

It is not possible at this time to predict how future regulations or legislation may address protection of species, habitats and wetlands and impact our business. However, we do not believe such regulatory actions will have a material adverse effect on our operations, or the construction and operations at the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal.

Market Factors and Competition

Market Factors

Our ability to enter into additional long-term SPAs to underpin the development of additional Trains or develop new projects is subject to market factors. These factors include changes in worldwide supply and demand for natural gas, LNG and substitute products, the relative prices for natural gas, crude oil and substitute products in North America and international markets, the extent of energy security needs in the European Union and elsewhere, the rate of fuel switching for power generation from coal, nuclear or oil to natural gas and other overarching factors such as global economic growth and the pace of any transition from fossil-based systems of energy production and consumption to alternative energy sources. In addition, our ability to obtain additional funding to execute our business strategy is subject to the investment community’s appetite for investment in LNG and natural gas infrastructure and our ability to access capital markets.

We expect that global demand for natural gas and LNG will continue to increase as nations seek more abundant, reliable and environmentally cleaner fuel alternatives to oil and coal. Market participants around the globe have shown commitments to environmental goals consistent with many policy initiatives that we believe are constructive for LNG demand and infrastructure growth. Currently, significant amounts of money are being invested across Europe, Asia and Latin America in natural gas projects under construction, and more continues to be earmarked to planned projects globally. In Europe, there are various plans to install more than 85 mtpa of import capacity over the near-term to secure access to LNG and displace Russian gas imports. In India, there are more than 11,000 kilometers of gas pipelines under construction to expand the gas distribution network and increase access to natural gas. And in China, billions of U.S. dollars have already been invested and hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars are expected to be further invested all along the natural gas value chain to enable growth and decrease harmful emissions. Furthermore, some of the existing integrated liquefaction facilities outside of the U.S. have been experiencing issues related to reduced feed gas as a result of depleting upstream resources. Global supply contributions from these plants have been decreasing and LNG supply growth is expected to help support these shortages.

As a result of these dynamics, we expect natural gas and LNG to continue to play an important role in satisfying energy demand going forward. In its forecast published in the third quarter of 2023, Wood Mackenzie Limited (“WoodMac”) forecasted that global demand for LNG would increase by approximately 60%, from approximately 411 mtpa, or 19.7 Tcf, in 2022, to 657 mtpa, or 31.5 Tcf, in 2040 and to 709 mtpa or 34 Tcf in 2050. In its forecast published in the third quarter of 2023, WoodMac also forecasted LNG production from existing operational facilities and new facilities already under construction would be able to supply the market with approximately 544 mtpa in 2040, declining to 477 mtpa in 2050. This could result in a market need for construction of an additional approximately 113 mtpa of LNG production by 2040 and about 231 mtpa by 2050. As a cleaner burning fuel with lower emissions than coal or liquid fuels in power generation, we expect natural gas and LNG to play a central role in balancing grids, serving as back up for intermittent energy sources and contributing to a low carbon energy system globally. We believe the capital and operating costs of the uncommitted capacity of our Liquefaction Project, as well as our proposed expansion at Sabine Pass is competitive with new proposed projects globally and we are well-positioned to capture a portion of this incremental market need.

We have limited exposure to oil price movements as we have contracted a significant portion of our LNG production capacity under long-term sale and purchase agreements indexed to Henry Hub. These agreements contain fixed fees that are required to be paid even if the customers elect to cancel or suspend delivery of LNG cargoes. Through our SPAs and IPM agreement, we have contracted approximately 85% of the total anticipated production from the Liquefaction Project, with approximately 14 years of weighted average remaining life as of December 31, 2023, excluding volumes that are contractually subject to additional liquefaction capacity beyond what is currently in construction or operation. Customers are required to pay a fixed fee with respect to the contracted volumes, irrespective of their election to cancel or suspend deliveries of LNG cargoes.

Competition

Despite the long term nature of our SPAs, when SPL needs to replace or amend any existing SPA or enter into new SPAs, SPL will compete on the basis of price per contracted volume of LNG with other natural gas liquefaction projects throughout the world, including our affiliate Corpus Christi Liquefaction, LLC (“CCL”), which operates three Trains at a natural gas liquefaction facility near Corpus Christi, Texas. Revenues associated with any incremental volumes of the Liquefaction Project, including those made available to Cheniere Marketing, will also be subject to market-based price competition. Many of the companies with which we compete are major energy corporations with longer operating histories, more development experience, greater name recognition, greater financial, technical and marketing resources and greater access to LNG markets than us.

Corporate Responsibility

As described in Market Factors and Competition, we expect that global demand for natural gas and LNG will continue to increase as nations seek more abundant, reliable and environmentally cleaner fuel alternatives to oil and coal. Our vision is to provide clean, secure and affordable energy to the world. This vision underpins our focus on responding to the world’s shared energy challenges—expanding the global supply of clean, secure and affordable energy, improving air quality, reducing emissions and supporting the transition to a lower-carbon future. Our approach to corporate responsibility is guided by our Climate and Sustainability Principles: Transparency, Science, Supply Chain and Operational Excellence. In August 2023, Cheniere published The Power of Connection, its fourth Corporate Responsibility (“CR”) report, which details Cheniere’s approach and progress on ESG matters. Cheniere’s CR report is available at www.cheniere.com/our-responsibility/reporting-center. Information on Cheniere’s website, including the CR report, is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Cheniere’s climate strategy is to measure and mitigate emissions – to better position our LNG supplies to remain competitive in a lower carbon future, providing energy, economic and environmental security to our customers across the world. To maximize the environmental benefits of our LNG, we believe it is important to develop future climate goals and strategies based on an accurate and holistic assessment of the emissions profile of our LNG, accounting for all steps in the supply chain.

Consequently, Cheniere has collaborated with natural gas midstream companies, technology providers and leading academic institutions on life-cycle assessment (“LCA”) models, quantification, monitoring, reporting and verification (“QMRV”) of GHG emissions and other research and development projects. Cheniere also co-founded and sponsored the Energy Emissions Modeling and Data Lab (“EEMDL”), a multidisciplinary research and education initiative led by the University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with Colorado State University and the Colorado School of Mines. In addition,

Cheniere commenced providing Cargo Emissions Tags (“CE Tags”) to its long-term customers in June 2022, and in October 2022 joined the Oil and Gas Methane Partnership (“OGMP”) 2.0, the United Nations Environment Programme’s (“UNEP”) flagship oil and gas methane emissions reporting and mitigation initiative.

Our total incremental expenditures related to climate initiatives, including capital expenditures, were not material to our Consolidated Financial Statements during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. However, as governments consider and implement actions to reduce GHG emissions and the transition to a lower-carbon economy continues to evolve, as described in Market Factors and Competition, we expect the scope and extent of our future climate and sustainability initiatives to evolve accordingly. While we have not incurred material direct expenditures related to climate change, we are proactive in our management of climate risks and opportunities, including compliance with existing and future government regulations. We face certain business and operational risks associated with physical impacts from climate change, such as exposure to severe weather events or changes in weather patterns, in addition to transition risks. Please see Item 1A. Risk Factors for additional discussion.

Subsidiaries

Substantially all of our assets are held by our subsidiaries. We conduct most of our business through these subsidiaries, including the development, construction and operation of our LNG terminal business.

Employees

We have no employees. We rely on our general partner to manage all aspects of the development, construction, operations, maintenance and management of the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal and to conduct our business. Because our general partner has no employees, it relies on subsidiaries of Cheniere to provide the personnel necessary to allow it to meet its management obligations to us, SPLNG, SPL and CTPL. As of December 31, 2023, Cheniere and its subsidiaries had 1,605 full-time employees, including 501 employees who directly supported the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal operations. See Note 14—Related Party Transactions of our Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for a discussion of the services agreements with subsidiaries of Cheniere.

Available Information

Our common units have been publicly traded since March 21, 2007 and are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CQP.” Our principal executive offices are located at 845 Texas Avenue, Suite 1250, Houston, Texas 77002, and our telephone number is (713) 375-5000. Our internet address is www.cheniere.com. We provide public access to our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and amendments to these reports as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file those materials with, or furnish those materials to, the SEC under the Exchange Act. These reports may be accessed free of charge through our internet website. We make our website content available for informational purposes only. The website should not be relied upon for investment purposes and is not incorporated by reference into this Form 10-K.

We will also make available to any unitholder, without charge, copies of our annual report on Form 10-K as filed with the SEC. For copies of this, or any other filing, please contact: Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P, Investor Relations Department, 845 Texas Avenue, Suite 1250, Houston, Texas 77002 or call (713) 375-5000. The SEC maintains an internet site (www.sec.gov) that contains reports and other information regarding issuers.

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