Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. Reports First Quarter 2017 Results

HOUSTON, May 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Summary of First Quarter 2017 Results (in millions, except LNG data)

Recent Achievements

Strategic

• Year to date, LNG from the SPL Project (defined below) has been delivered to 6 new countries. As of April 2017, LNG from the SPL Project had reached 20 of the 39 LNG importing countries around the world.

Operational

• 43 LNG cargoes (154 TBtu) were loaded from the SPL Project in the first quarter of 2017, and in early April 2017 we reached the milestone of 100 cumulative LNG cargoes exported from the SPL Project.
• Sabine Pass Liquefaction, LLC ("SPL") commenced production and shipment of LNG commissioning cargoes from Train 3 of the SPL Project in January 2017. In March 2017, substantial completion was achieved and operating activities commenced.
• Commissioning activities for Train 4 of the SPL Project began in March 2017.

Financial

• In February 2017, SPL issued an aggregate principal amount of $800 million of 5.00% Senior Secured Notes due 2037. Net proceeds of the offering, after deducting estimated fees and expenses, were used to repay all of the outstanding borrowings under the 2015 SPL Credit Facilities, and are being used to pay a portion of the capital costs in connection with the construction of Trains 1 through 5 of the SPL Project.
• In March 2017, SPL issued an aggregate principal amount of $1.35 billion of 4.20% Senior Secured Notes due 2028. Net proceeds of the offering, after deducting the initial purchasers' commissions and estimated fees and expenses, are being used to pay a portion of the capital costs in connection with the construction of Trains 1 through 5 of the SPL Project. In connection with the offering, SPL terminated the 2015 SPL Credit Facilities.
• In January 2017, Fitch Ratings assigned SPL's senior secured debt an investment grade rating of BBB-.

Liquefaction Project Update

Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. ("Cheniere Partners") (NYSE MKT: CQP) reported net income of $47 million for the three months ended March 31, 2017, compared to a net loss of $75 million for the same period in 2016.  Adjusted EBITDA¹ for the three months ended March 31, 2017 was $319 million, compared to $12 million for the comparable 2016 period.

During the three months ended March 31, 2017, a total of 43 LNG cargoes were loaded from the SPL Project, seven of which were commissioning cargoes.

Total operating costs and expenses increased $595 million during the three months ended March 31, 2017, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2016 generally as a result of the commencement of operations at the SPL Project in May 2016 upon the substantial completion of Train 1, followed by the substantial completion of Train 2  and Train 3 in September 2016 and March 2017, respectively. Depreciation and amortization expense increased during the three months ended March 31, 2017, compared to the three months ended March 31, 2016 as we began depreciation of our assets related to Trains 1 through 3 of the SPL Project upon reaching substantial completion.

SPL Project Update

Through Cheniere Partners, we are developing up to six Trains at the Sabine Pass LNG terminal adjacent to the existing regasification facilities (the "SPL Project"). Each Train is expected to have a nominal production capacity, which is prior to adjusting for planned maintenance, production reliability, and potential overdesign, of approximately 4.5 million tonnes per annum ("mtpa") of LNG. Trains 1, 2, and 3 are operational, Train 4 is undergoing commissioning, Train 5 is under construction, and Train 6 is being commercialized and has all necessary regulatory approvals in place.

Distributions to Unitholders

We will pay a cash distribution per common unit of $0.425 to unitholders of record as of May 2, 2017, and the related general partner distribution on May 15, 2017.

2017 Full Year Distribution Guidance

Investor Conference Call and Webcast

Cheniere Energy, Inc. will host a conference call to discuss its financial and operating results for the first quarter on Thursday, May 4, 2017, at 11 a.m. Eastern time / 10 a.m. Central time. A listen-only webcast of the call and an accompanying slide presentation may be accessed through our website at www.cheniere.com. Following the call, an archived recording will be made available on our website. The call and accompanying slide presentation may include financial and operating results or other information regarding Cheniere Partners.

About Cheniere Partners
Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Sabine Pass LNG, L.P., Cheniere Partners owns 100% of the Sabine Pass LNG terminal located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, on the Sabine-Neches Waterway less than four miles from the Gulf Coast. The Sabine Pass LNG terminal includes existing infrastructure of five LNG storage tanks with capacity of approximately 16.9 billion cubic feet equivalent (Bcfe), two marine berths that can accommodate vessels with nominal capacity of up to 266,000 cubic meters and vaporizers with regasification capacity of approximately 4.0 Bcf/d.  Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Cheniere Creole Trail Pipeline, L.P., Cheniere Partners also owns a 94-mile pipeline that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG terminal with a number of large interstate pipelines.

Cheniere Partners, through its subsidiary, SPL, is developing, constructing, and operating natural gas liquefaction facilities at the Sabine Pass LNG terminal adjacent to the existing regasification facilities. Cheniere Partners, through SPL, plans to construct over time up to six liquefaction trains, which are in various stages of development, construction, and operations.  Trains 1, 2 and 3 have commenced commercial operations, Train 4 is undergoing commissioning, Train 5 is under construction and Train 6 is being commercialized and has all necessary regulatory approvals in place. Each liquefaction train is expected to have a nominal production capacity, which is prior to adjusting for planned maintenance, production reliability, and potential overdesign, of approximately 4.5 mtpa of LNG. SPL has entered into six third-party LNG sale and purchase agreements ("SPAs") that in the aggregate equate to approximately 19.75 mtpa of LNG and commence with the date of first commercial delivery of Trains 1 through 5 as specified in the respective SPAs.

For additional information, please refer to the Cheniere Partners website at www.cheniere.com and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2017, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains certain statements that may include "forward-looking statements." All statements, other than statements of historical or present facts or conditions, included herein are "forward-looking statements." Included among "forward-looking statements" are, among other things, (i) statements regarding Cheniere Partners' business strategy, plans and objectives, including the development, construction and operation of liquefaction facilities, (ii) statements regarding expectations regarding regulatory authorizations and approvals, (iii) statements expressing beliefs and expectations regarding the development of Cheniere Partners' LNG terminal and liquefaction business, (iv) statements regarding the business operations and prospects of third parties, (v) statements regarding potential financing arrangements, and (vi) statements regarding future discussions and entry into contracts. Although Cheniere Partners believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. Cheniere Partners' actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those discussed in Cheniere Partners' periodic reports that are filed with and available from the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Other than as required under the securities laws, Cheniere Partners does not assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.

(Financial Tables Follow)

Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures

Regulation G Reconciliation

In addition to disclosing financial results in accordance with U.S. GAAP, the accompanying news release contains a non-GAAP financial measure. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure that is used to facilitate comparisons of operating performance across periods. This non-GAAP measure should be viewed as a supplement to and not a substitute for our U.S. GAAP measures of performance and the financial results calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and the reconciliation from these results should be carefully evaluated.

Adjusted EBITDA is calculated by taking net income (loss) before interest expense, net of capitalized interest, changes in the fair value and settlement of our interest rate derivatives, taxes, depreciation and amortization, and adjusting for the effects of certain non-cash items, other non-operating income or expense items and other items not otherwise predictive or indicative of ongoing operating performance, including the effects of modification or extinguishment of debt and changes in the fair value of our commodity derivatives. Adjusted EBITDA is not intended to represent cash flows from operations or net income (loss) as defined by U.S. GAAP and is not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies.

We believe Adjusted EBITDA provides relevant and useful information to management, investors and other users of our financial information in evaluating the effectiveness of our operating performance in a manner that is consistent with management's evaluation of business performance. Management believes Adjusted EBITDA is widely used by investors to measure a company's operating performance without regard to items such as interest expense, taxes, depreciation and amortization which vary substantially from company to company depending on capital structure, the method by which assets were acquired and depreciation policies. Further, the exclusion of certain non-cash items, other non-operating income or expense items and other items not otherwise predictive or indicative of ongoing operating performance enables comparability to prior period performance and trend analysis.

Adjusted EBITDA

The following table reconciles our Adjusted EBITDA to U.S. GAAP results for the three months ended March 31, 2017 and 2016 (in millions):

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1} Non-GAAP financial measure. See "Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures" for further details.

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SOURCE Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P.