The Barcarena Power Plant has reached a major commissioning milestone in Pará, northern Brazil. New Fortress Energy achieved first fire at the 624MW CELBA 2 facility on October 6, 2025. The milestone started the plant’s hot commissioning process and moved the project closer to commercial operations.
The project forms part of New Fortress Energy’s integrated LNG-to-power complex in Barcarena. The company secured up to $575 million to finance the original 630MW Barcarena power plant.
The development has since progressed into a wider power cluster. NFE now plans 2.2GW of generation capacity around its Barcarena LNG terminal.
Barcarena Power Plant advances toward commercial operations
First fire marks the initial ignition of the plant’s gas turbines. It also starts hot commissioning, which tests the facility under operating conditions. NFE expected commercial operations later in 2025 following the milestone.
The 624MW CELBA 2 facility will receive LNG through NFE’s Barcarena terminal. The terminal began operations in 2024 and supports the company’s integrated gas-to-power model.
The original Barcarena power project carried a 630MW capacity. NFE secured financing for construction through a package worth up to $575 million in 2023.
The facility also operates under a 25-year power agreement. Consequently, the project will provide long-term electricity supply to Brazil’s northern region.
The Barcarena terminal also supplies natural gas to Norsk Hydro’s Alunorte alumina refinery. That agreement runs for 15 years and began in the first quarter of 2024.
Barcarena Power Plant expands into 2.2GW energy cluster
The Barcarena Power Plant now forms part of NFE’s broader generation expansion. The company is developing the 624MW CELBA 2 facility alongside the 1.6GW PortoCem Power Plant.
PortoCem sits within NFE’s wider Brazilian power portfolio. The company reported that construction had reached approximately 75% completion in October 2025. It targeted operations by August 2026.
The Barcarena LNG terminal will supply LNG to both power developments. Therefore, the integrated complex combines fuel import, storage and power generation infrastructure.
NFE’s strategy also supports additional industrial demand around Barcarena. The company has positioned the complex to provide reliable electricity for northern Brazil’s growing energy requirements.
The development supports a broader shift toward LNG-based generation. It can help replace more expensive and higher-emission liquid fuels in some industrial applications.
In March 2026, NFE confirmed that it continued advancing the Barcarena cluster. The company specifically identified CELBA 2 and PortoCem as priority infrastructure projects.
Barcarena Power Plant strengthens Brazil’s northern grid
The Barcarena development adds substantial dispatchable generation capacity to northern Brazil. CELBA 2 alone will provide 624MW once commercial operations begin.
The project also benefits from direct access to LNG infrastructure. This configuration reduces the need for separate fuel logistics and strengthens operational integration.
Furthermore, the wider 2.2GW cluster could support industrial expansion around Barcarena. It combines power generation with an established LNG import terminal and industrial gas demand.
The project’s construction and commissioning milestones demonstrate the scale of Brazil’s gas-to-power investment. They also highlight the growing role of LNG infrastructure within the country’s electricity system.
NFE must now complete commissioning and operational testing at CELBA 2. The company will then progress toward commercial operations and full electricity delivery.
Brazil’s LNG-to-power expansion also reflects a wider push for large-scale gas infrastructure across Latin America. In Argentina, a separate $24 billion development is advancing toward financing for new LNG export infrastructure. The Río Negro LNG project and its proposed $15 billion financing package highlights the scale of investment now entering the region’s energy infrastructure sector.
Also read: UK-based Shell Inks a $50 Billion Agreement in Argentina’s LNG Project
Barcarena CELBA 2 Power Plant: Timeline
2021: New Fortress Energy (NFE) announces plans to develop multiple LNG-to-power assets in Brazil, including the CELBA 2 site at Barcarena, Pará
2022: Engineering, procurement, and early construction activities begin. NFE also advances development of the Barcarena LNG terminal to support the project’s fuel supply
2023: Major construction milestones achieved. These include turbine installation and grid interconnection preparation
Early 2025: Commissioning phase begins. Systems integration and pre-startup testing also carried out
October 6, 2025: NFE confirms first fire, marking initial turbine ignition and start of the hot commissioning process.
CELBA 2
CELBA 2 forms part of New Fortress Energy’s broader 2.2 GW Brazilian generation portfolio, which also includes the 1.6 GW PortoCem Power Plant in Ceará, currently about 75 % complete with COD targeted for August 2026. Together, these projects continue to advance NFE’s strategy to expand its Latin American gas-to-power asset base and reinforce Brazil’s grid with reliable, lower-emission capacity.
The Barcarena power plant also positions NFE to play a central role in meeting northern Brazil’s industrial and energy demand growth. It is also seen as a step toward a phased transition from heavy fuel oil and diesel to LNG-based generation. Also noteworthy is that New Fortress Energy reached a milestone agreement for long-term LNG supply with the Puerto Rican Government on September 16, 2025. This goes to underscore the aforementioned sentiment on energy transition in the region.
Work on Barcarena Power Plant in Progress
Reported November 8, 2023 – With the recent execution of definitive agreements to raise up to $575 million in asset-based financing, New Fortress Energy is progressing further with its Barcarena power plant project. Lumina Capital Management, BTG Asset Management, and the Brazilian development bank BNDES will all provide the capital.
NFE states that these financings would be used to conclude the construction of its 630 MW Barcarena power plant. This is in accordance with a fixed-price, date-certain EPC contract with Mitsubishi and Toyo Setal. The project is currently around 37% complete.
The plant is expected to commence operations in the third quarter of 2025. This is according to a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA). The agreement was entered into with a number of Brazilian electricity distribution companies.
Barcarena Power Plant’s location
It sits next to NFE’s LNG import terminal facility at the mouth of the Amazon River.
According to NFE, the company’s plan to convert the LNG carrier Energos Celsius into a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) is still on schedule to be completed in November 2023. This will allow for the first gas to be delivered to consumers at the Barcarena import terminal by the end of 2023. NFE has granted Energos Celsius a long-term charter from Energos Infrastructure.
It also ought to be noted that recently, NFE confirmed the execution of a definitive agreement to charter the FSRU Energos Winter from Petrobras. The state-owned gas and oil company in Brazil will commence this charter in December 2023.
NFE claims that this FSRU is expected to be deployed at Terminal Gas Sul (TGS). The terminal is the company’s newest LNG import terminal. It is said that the facility is situated in Santa Catarina, Brazil. It is projected that TGS will commence commercial operations in January 2024. This is ahead of schedule, unlike what was expected.
New Fortress Energy continues to take part in the global transition to clean, cheap, and reliable energy with projects such as this.
Project Fact Sheet
Name: Barcarena Power Plant.
Current facility: CELBA 2 Power Plant.
Location: Barcarena, Pará State, northern Brazil.
Developer: New Fortress Energy.
Project type: LNG-to-power facility.
Generation technology: Gas-fired combined-cycle power plant.
Original capacity: 630MW.
Current CELBA 2 capacity: 624MW.
Financing: Up to $575 million.
Fuel source: LNG.
LNG supplier infrastructure: Barcarena LNG terminal.
Power agreement: 25-year agreement.
Key milestone: First fire achieved October 6, 2025.
Commissioning stage: Hot commissioning.
Wider Barcarena generation capacity: 2.2GW.
Additional project: 1.6GW PortoCem Power Plant.
Industrial customer: Norsk Hydro’s Alunorte alumina refinery.
Industrial gas agreement: 15 years.
Current development focus: Commissioning and completion of Barcarena generation assets.
Project Team
Developer: New Fortress Energy.
LNG infrastructure operator: New Fortress Energy.
Power plant operator: New Fortress Energy.
EPC contractor: Mitsubishi.
EPC contractor: Toyo Setal.
LNG terminal: New Fortress Energy.
Industrial gas customer: Norsk Hydro.
Alumina refinery: Alunorte.
Financing providers: Project lenders supporting up to $575 million financing.
Power offtakers: Brazilian electricity distribution companies.
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