By Harry R. Weber and Tim Loh

(Bloomberg) — Charif Souki is doubling down on liquefied pure gasoline.

Two months after the outspoken founder and chief government officer of Cheniere Energy Inc. was faraway from the corporate, Souki’s teaming up with former BG Group Plc government Martin Houston to start out an LNG firm that Souki says can beat Cheniere at its personal sport.

Their new firm, Tellurian Investments, plans to supply pure gasoline liquefaction and export initiatives alongside the U.S. Gulf Coast. The two are planning to develop their first plant close to the Calcasieu River in Louisiana, costing between $6 billion and $8 billion, Souki mentioned in an interview at Bloomberg’s Houston workplace on Tuesday. Souki plans to spend a few of his personal cash on the challenge however declined to say how a lot. He additionally plans to lift capital, he mentioned.

“This is easy compared to what we had at Cheniere,” Souki mentioned within the interview. “I have money and we don’t have any debt.”

Souki was faraway from Cheniere in December, simply months earlier than the corporate’s first LNG exports have been scheduled to ship. Souki, ever bullish on international LNG demand, wished Cheniere to maintain constructing new export terminals. The firm’s board — influenced by weak oil markets, the specter of a looming international LNG glut and billionaire activist investor Carl Icahn — wished to reduce plans, deal with Cheniere’s preliminary initiatives and attempt to flip a revenue for the primary time.

Board Meetings

Souki attended three board conferences after his ouster as CEO, ready to see if Cheniere had any plans to proceed the LNG export progress he envisioned. When he realized the corporate didn’t, he introduced his plans.

“It became very clear they did not need my advice,” he mentioned of the board.

Souki mentioned he can most likely lower the price of growing the preliminary plant by 20 p.c from what it value Cheniere to construct the primary liquefaction practice at its export terminal at Sabine Pass, Louisiana.

Earlier this month, Cheniere sued an organization known as Parallax Enterprises that it mentioned is wholly owned by Martin Houston for defaulting on a $46 million mortgage that was secured by Parallax’s belongings. Cheniere had lent the funds to Parallax whereas the 2 firms mentioned a possible association for joint improvement of two liquefaction vegetation, in response to the criticism. Parallax knowledgeable Cheniere on Feb. 1 that it was “unable to satisfy current payment obligations,” in response to the criticism.

Tellurian, Parallax

Joi Lecznar, a spokeswoman for each Tellurian and Parallax, mentioned in an e-mail that the 2 entities are separate firms and that Parallax can’t touch upon pending litigation.

Houston joined BG within the Eighties and led the corporate’s LNG enterprise. He retired in early 2014 as BG’s chief working officer after failing to win the corporate’s prime job.

Souki, a Beirut-raised former funding banker, began a collection of stylish eating places in Aspen and Los Angeles within the Eighties. He created Cheniere within the mid-’90s out of a former restaurant chain known as All American Burger Inc. that had morphed right into a Hollywood film-colorization firm. Cheniere initially deliberate to import LNG, however Souki reversed course after the U.S. shale revolution.

Two many years later, Souki’s again ready to be entrepreneurial.

“Martin is a free agent,” he mentioned, “and so am I.”

© 2016 Bloomberg L.P