Cheniere Energy 401(k) match, vesting and fees
What Cheniere Energy's 401(k) plan says about matching contributions
The Company makes matching contributions equal to 100% of the participant’s elective contributions up to a maximum level of 6% of the participant’s eligible compensation. If a participant who was an active employee on the last day of the Plan year did not receive the full Company match, the Company provides a year-end “true up” contribution to provide such participants with the match they would have received had the timing of their contributions not limited the Company match.
Quoted directly from the filing. Plan terms may have changed; check your current Summary Plan Description.
Plan features
Indented passages are quoted word for word from the audit report; plan terms may have changed since, so check your current Summary Plan Description.
| Employer match | Quoted from the filing above | Audit report, p. 30 ↗ |
| Match vesting | Participants are immediately vested in their deferred contributions and in Company matching and profit-sharing contributions, plus actual earnings thereon. | Audit report, p. 30 ↗ |
| Automatic enrollment | The Plan includes an auto-enrollment provision whereby all newly eligible employees are automatically enrolled in the Plan unless they affirmatively elect not to participate in the Plan. Automatically enrolled participants have their deferral rate set at 6% of eligible compensation and the contribution rate increases by 1% each year until it reaches a maximum of 10% of eligible compensation, unless they elect otherwise. | Audit report, p. 29 ↗ |
| Roth contributions | Participants may elect to contribute, on a pre-tax or Roth basis, up to 75% of their eligible compensation as defined by the Plan, subject to the annual deferral limit established by the IRC, which was $23,000 for 2024. | Audit report, p. 29 ↗ |
| Loans | Participants may borrow up to a maximum amount equal to the lesser of $50,000 or 50% of their vested account balance. The minimum loan amount is $1,000. Notes receivable from participants are secured by the balance in the participant’s account and bear interest at a fixed Prime rate plus 1% as of the first day of the calendar quarter in which the note was requested. The loans are repaid ratably through payroll deductions over a period of five years or less for a general loan, and up to ten years on a primary residence loan. | Audit report, p. 30 ↗ |
| Recordkeeper | Empower Annuity Insurance Company O | Schedule C ↗ |
| Independent auditor | Calvetti Ferguson (unmodified opinion, limited scope) | Schedule H ↗ |
| Plan type and status | 401(k) · Active | Form 5500 ↗ |
All rows are from the plan year 2024 filing; plan features from its audit report.
How the plan compares
Plan year 2024 medians for 87 defined-contribution plans in utilities with 1,000 to 4,999 participants.
| Cheniere Energy: employer contribution per participant | $8,187 | |
| Peer median | $5,188 |
| Cheniere Energy: average balance | $205,018 | |
| Peer median | $183,243 |
| Cheniere Energy: admin expenses ÷ assets | 0.05% | |
| Peer median | 0.09% |
Admin expenses are the plan's reported administrative expenses divided by its assets; they do not include fund expense ratios.
Plan history
Plan assets went from $332M at the end of plan year 2023 to $394M at the end of plan year 2024.
| Plan year | Participants | Assets | Employer contributions | Per participant | Admin expense ratio | Match formula | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 1,958 | $394M | $15.7M | $8,187 | 0.05% | Quoted in the audit report, p. 30 ↗ | Form 5500 ↗ |
| 2023 | 1,847 | $332M | $16.8M | $9,165 | 0.06% | Not published | Form 5500 ↗ |
Common questions
Does Cheniere Energy match 401(k) contributions?
The audit report attached to the Cheniere Retirement Plan's plan year 2024 Form 5500, page 30 says: “The Company makes matching contributions equal to 100% of the participant’s elective contributions up to a maximum level of 6% of the participant’s eligible compensation. If a participant who was an active employee on the last day of the Plan year did not receive the full Company match, the Company provides a year-end “true up” contribution to provide such participants with the match they would have received had the timing of their contributions not limited the Company match.” Plan terms may have changed; check your current Summary Plan Description.
When is the Cheniere Energy 401(k) match vested?
The audit report attached to the plan year 2024 Form 5500, page 30 says: “Participants are immediately vested in their deferred contributions and in Company matching and profit-sharing contributions, plus actual earnings thereon.”
Who manages the Cheniere Energy 401(k)?
The recordkeeper listed on Schedule C of the plan year 2024 filing is Empower Annuity Insurance Company O. The plan administrator is Cheniere Energy, Inc..
I left Cheniere Energy. How do I find my old 401(k)?
Your account stays in the plan until you move it. Contact the plan administrator (Cheniere Energy, Inc., (713) 375-5000) or the recordkeeper, Empower Annuity Insurance Company O. The Cheniere Energy old 401(k) page lists the contacts from every plan filing. Find an old Cheniere Energy 401(k)
Data from the public Form 5500 annual reports Cheniere Energy filed with the U.S. Department of Labor (plan years 2023 and 2024) and, where noted, the attached independent auditor's report. Plan terms may have changed since the filing; check your current Summary Plan Description. PlanFacts is not affiliated with Cheniere Energy. Not financial advice. Report a correction · Methodology