Total is taking over the liquefied natural gas business of Toshiba in a deal that is seeing the Japanese player pay a net $800 million to the French supermajor, writes Eoin O'Cinniede.

Paris-based Total will pay $15 million for Toshiba’s US LNG business, with the latter to make a one-off payment of $815 million to the buyer in relation to LNG contracts it has entered into.

The assets being taken over by Total include a 20-year tolling agreement for 2.2 million tonnes per annum of LNG from the third train at Freeport LNG, which is set to come online in the second quarter next year.

Toshiba expects to book a loss of 93 billion yen ($858.18 million) on the deal, which is set to close by the end of the year.

In late April, US federal regulators authorised a planned fourth train at the Freeport LNG terminal in Texas to export to nations with which the US does not have a free trade agreement.

Late last week, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) granted the project's request to extend the deadline to complete the initial three-train development by 11 months, to 30 June 2020.

The original Ferc order issued in 2014 required the facility to be placed in service by 30 July of this year.

Privately-held Freeport LNG expects to see commercial start-up from its first train in the third quarter of this year.

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Total in Toshiba takeover