HOUSTON, Sept 11 (Reuters) -

U.S. liquefied natural gas export terminals on the Louisiana

coast may have escaped the brunt of Hurricane Francine and put

off a major test of their ability to withstand a direct storm

hit to another day.

Francine was on track on Wednesday to lash south-central

Louisiana, east of Cameron Parish that is home to several of the

newly operating projects, with 90 mile-per-hour (145 kph) winds.

Three of the four largest U.S. LNG export facilities are in

Louisiana.

"This hurricane seems to be avoiding the majority of the LNG

facility corridor," said Alex Gafford, an energy analyst at

researcher East Daley Analytics.

Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass facility, the U.S.

largest LNG export plant, remained in operation on Wednesday

with two vessels moored at the Cameron Parish facility. The

facility is more than 200 miles west of Francine's projected

landfall.

"LNG production at Sabine Pass remains uninterrupted," with

Cheniere continuing with its storm preparations, the company

said in a statement to Reuters.

Gas flow to Sabine Pass remained high on Wednesday at 4.6

bcf a day but fell to just over 900 million cubic feet or about

half of the usual intake at Cameron LNG, LSEG data showed.

Venture Global LNG's Calcasieu Pass LNG plant and Sempra

Infrastructure's Cameron LNG facility, also lay west of the

storm's path. Cameron LNG had no vessels in its port on

Wednesday.

Venture Global's Calcasieu Pass LNG facility located near

the Texas border, and the yet to be commissioned, Plaquemines

plant near New Orleans, were hunkering down, the company said.

LNG tanker the Qogir was moored at Venture Global's

Plaquemines plant. Venture Gator, another tanker that was at the

mouth of the Mississippi River, has left and made its way to the

safety of the Gulf of Mexico, LSEG ship tracking data showed.

During the first half of 2024, roughly 389 vessels picked up

cargoes in Louisiana, including about 218 from Sabine Pass, 75

from Calcasieu Pass, and 96 from Cameron LNG according to U.S.

Department of Energy data.

Much of U.S. efforts to build up LNG exports has focused

on the Louisiana coast, despite warnings from critics on their

exposure to Atlantic hurricanes.

Retired General Russell Honore, the leader of the Louisiana

based GreenARMY alliance of civic, community, and environmental

groups, said the LNG plants are in high risk areas due to their

insufficient buffer zone.

A 10-foot wave surge combined with heavy rainfall could

overwhelm plant defenses, he said on Tuesday. The NHC has

forecast an up to 10-foot surge for areas in the direct path of

Francine.