Offshore staff
MONACO -- A multi-national quartet have signed a partnership agreement for development of a floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility in the Timor Sea off northern Australia.
SBM Offshore, Linde Group's Engineering Division, PTT FLNG and PTTEP Australasia are collaborating on a project targeting floating production of LNG from three groups of offshore gas fields, including Cash-Maple, Southern, and Oliver.
Preliminary studies started in March and the project will continue into the FEED phase by end-2011, assuming that gas reserves appraisal meets expectations. A final investment decision (FID) should be taken at the end of next year, leading to, first commercial FLNG operations at end-2016.
The FLNG facility will be stationed 680 km (422 mi) west of Darwin, and 200 km (124 mi) southeast of the Indonesian coastline. It will have capacity to produce around 2 MM t/yr of LNG.
SBM Offshore will contribute its mooring system and marine know-how and will also be involved in the gas processing on the FLNG topsides.
Following the FID, the partners plan to incorporate a special-purpose company to jointly construct, finance, own, and operate the FLNG facility, which will be contracted on a lease and operate basis to the upstream company operating the fields.
07/08/2011
