Woodside Energy is evaluating the impact of US tariffs on its Louisiana liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, which is expected to strengthen the company’s global LNG position.

The project, acquired from Tellurian for $1.2bn (A$1.88bn) last year, is expected to cost $16bn for its first development phase.

In a recent quarterly update, Woodside CEO Meg O’Neill highlighted that the company is assessing the potential impacts of recent tariff announcements and potential further trade measures on Louisiana LNG.

She also mentioned that the plant's location in a foreign-trade zone offers some financial flexibility, allowing for the deferral of tariff payments until the completion of each LNG train.

Despite this, approximately half of the project's equipment and materials require importation, which could be subject to tariffs.

O’Neill added: “Around 25% of Louisiana LNG’s estimated capital expenditure [capex] is equipment and materials, approximately half of which is currently expected to be sourced from the US."

Earlier this month, Woodside made a strategic move to enhance the Louisiana LNG project's financial outlook by selling a 40% stake in the export terminal to US investment firm Stonepeak.

Additionally, Woodside last week secured its first offtake agreement with Germany's Uniper for one million tonnes per annum.

O’Neill said: “We are pleased with the strong level of interest from potential strategic partners and are advancing discussions targeting further equity sell-down in Louisiana LNG.

“We are progressing at pace towards a final investment decision on Louisiana LNG, positioning Woodside as a global LNG powerhouse.”

The update coincides with Woodside reporting quarterly revenue of $3.32bn as of 31 March 2025, surpassing the Visible Alpha consensus estimate of $2.79bn and representing a 13% increase from the previous year's $2.95bn.

However, the company experienced a 5% quarterly revenue decline due to lower oil-linked prices, cyclone impacts on its North West Shelf project and unplanned outages at the Pluto LNG project.

Despite these challenges, Woodside's shares climbed 3.9% to A$20.470 in early trading, outperforming the broader energy sub-index's 3.1% gain.

The company has maintained its production and capex forecast for 2025.

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