Maritime Agency Approves $1B Blue Marlin Oil Export

The Louisiana offshore crude export project is the fourth deepwater port approval under the second Trump administration.

Updated on Nov. 13, 2026 in Oil and Gas

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a steel mooring buoy and pipeline riser rising from teal Gulf water beneath a pale sky, with a distant tanker silhouette. — Maritime Administration approved Energy Transfer's $1 billion Blue Marlin offshore crude export project 99 miles off Cameron Parish, Louisiana, on Nov. 5. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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The Maritime Administration approved Energy Transfer's $1 billion Blue Marlin offshore crude oil export project 99 miles off Cameron Parish, Louisiana, on Nov. 5. The project is designed to export up to 2 million barrels per day of crude oil.

Why it matters

The approval expands offshore crude export capacity from Louisiana and adds to a series of federal deepwater port authorizations for oil and gas projects. Louisiana residents and the state's energy sector could see new infrastructure and export activity as the project advances.

The $1 billion project would convert an existing 36-inch Stingray natural gas pipeline to carry crude oil from Energy Transfer's Nederland, Texas, terminal to offshore infrastructure. Final EPA air permits and certain state approvals are still pending.

The players

Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer is a major Texas-based midstream energy company that operates pipelines, terminals and export infrastructure across the United States.

The details

The Maritime Administration approved the project on Nov. 5, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission authorized the abandonment and sale of Stingray pipeline infrastructure needed for the conversion. The Trump administration has also approved Delfin LNG, a floating LNG export project offshore Louisiana, and Texas GulfLink, a crude oil export project offshore Texas.

Oct. 28: The Maritime Administration approved the $8.2 billion ST LNG project offshore Texas.
Nov. 5: The Maritime Administration approved the Blue Marlin crude oil export project.

Market Landscape

The approval adds to a run of federal deepwater port authorizations for oil and gas exports, including the Delfin LNG and Texas GulfLink projects. It positions Gulf Coast export capacity to compete more directly with onshore terminals as demand for U.S. crude grows.

Louisiana drivers and businesses are unlikely to see immediate effects, since the project still needs final EPA air permits and certain state approvals before construction and export operations can begin. Residents near the Gulf Coast may eventually see changes in energy-sector jobs and port activity if the project proceeds.

The takeaway

Federal approvals for offshore export terminals are moving forward even as key permits remain pending, so readers should watch for EPA and state decisions that will determine whether the Blue Marlin project is built.