> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Crystal Energy plans floating LNG tanker facility 10 miles off Malibu coast - URL: https://www.smdp.com/carolyn-sackariason-daily-press-the-backbone-trail-in-the-santa-monica-mountains-offers-a-360-degree-view-of-los-angeles-including-the-pacific-ocean-t/ - Published: 2003-11-17T16:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T03:14:42.000Z - Author: Carolyn Sackariason - Tags: Entertainment, Downtown, #archive-import *Safety, water quality are core issues in LNG proposal* An energy company plans to build a floating tanker facility to import and process liquid natural gas 10 miles off the Southern California coastline, just north of Malibu. Oxnard-based Crystal Energy LLC. spokeswoman Lisa Palmer said applications will be submitted in January to federal and state agencies for the three-tanker platform that will be permanently stationed off the Ventura County line. Liquid natural gas (LNG) is considered a highly flammable, hazardous material, which has some residents worried that the facility would expose them to vapor clouds if the materials were released by accident or by an act of terrorism. If LNG is exposed to any warmer surface, such as water or air, it vaporizes and forms a cloud. That cloud could then ignite the concentrated natural gas, experts say. Malibu resident Hans Laetz is concerned that the facility could be the biggest threat to the safety of Malibu residents since a proposal years ago to build a nuclear power plant in Latigo Canyon. “There is a great deal of danger if it explodes,” he said, adding that in 1944, in Cleveland, the worst natural gas incident in history occurred, killing 128 people after a LNG tank failed, spilled the gas into the sewer and storm drain system, and resulted in an explosion. The facility, called Cabrillo Port, would be the first LNG transfer station on the West Coast. The facility is described as a floating offshore vessel with three spherical storage tanks. The LNG would be pumped into tanks from transport ships that will import the gas purchased on the international market. “There are no points where LNG is imported in the western United States,” Palmer said. “In the last year, we’ve realized that we have a viable project here.” LNG, in a process called “regasification,” is converted back to its original gas state by being pumped through a heat exchange system. After the regasification at Cabrillo Port, the natural gas would then be transferred onshore via a 22-mile pipeline built along the ocean floor. That pipe would then be connected to an existing Southern California Gas Company pipeline system. LNG, which can be compressed to 1/600 of its volume, is a form of natural gas that has been refrigerated to minus-259 degrees Fahrenheit. It then becomes an odorless, colorless and clear liquid. The facility could deliver more than 200 billion cubic feet of natural gas to California annually, or 25 percent of the state’s residential energy needs. California currently imports more than 80 percent of its gas supply from producing basins outside of the state, officials say. The United States is the leading producer and consumer of natural gas, and it’s expected that an estimated 40-percent increase in current consumption will be needed over the next two decades, experts said. The project, which is estimated to cost hundreds of millions of dollars, requires approval from the U.S. Coast Guard, which is responsible for monitoring LNG terminals and carriers in coastal waters, as well as the State Lands Commission, which has jurisdiction over land underwater within three miles of the coast. Crystal Energy also needs the approval of the California Coastal Commission and a host of other agencies, ranging from the state coastal conservancy to the Public Utilities Commission to the Energy Commission. Palmer said she expects the approval process to take up to 24 months, adding that the project has been in the planning process for more than two years. The Oxnard City Council in the 1970s conducted a risk assessment study of a similar facility, and under a worst-case scenario, it estimated that there could be up to 70,000 casualties if an accident were to occur. Sara Wan, a Malibu resident and a member of the Coastal Commission, said the proposal creates a host of concerns, ranging from safety to development along the coast to water quality issues. “There would be a lot of concerns about safety,” she said, adding it’s too early to predict what the commission’s position will be on the proposal. “I don’t know how or where the commission would down on this.” And while there are plenty of issues to be studied regarding the proposal, technology has advanced as LNG has become more popular, said Peter Douglas, executive director of the California Coastal Commission. “We are looking carefully at the proposal, and if the risks have been minimized, we need to see that and believe it,” he said. Palmer said Crystal Energy has done some initial community outreach to let area residents know about the project and make them aware of its potential impacts, including safety. “Clearly there is a need for natural gas and we’ve got to find a way to provide it by minimizing its impacts.” she said, adding there are similar facilities in the Gulf of Mexico and in Boston Harbor. “LNG is new ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/111703-03_02.jpg) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/111703-03_03.jpg) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 17, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/111703.pdf?ref=smdp.com)