Occidental Gas Terminal OKd

Occidental Petroleum Corp. won federal approval Thursday to build a $600-million terminal in Texas to receive tanker shipments of liquefied natural gas.

Occidental’s Ingleside Energy Center would be able to process 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas a day. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the project at a meeting in Washington.

More than three dozen projects have been proposed throughout North America as rising gas demand outstrips growth of domestic supplies. In its gaseous form, the fuel can be transported only by pipeline, which limits most supplies to those pumped from wells in the U.S. and Canada.

“It’s a really good fit with our existing operations” because the company operates a chemical plant next door, said Jan Sieving, a spokeswoman for Occidental.

Shares of Westwood-based Occidental fell 25 cents to $80.37.