Steps taken toward world's first floating liquefaction, regasification vessel
HOUTSON, June 4
06/04/2012
By Warren R. True
Chief Technology Editor-LNG/Gas Processing
Pacific Rubiales Energy Corp., Bogata, via a build, own, and operate contract with Exmar NV, Antwerp, has authorized engineering and construction of what will be the world’s first floating natural gas liquefaction, regasification, and storage vessel.
Exmar last week awarded a contract for engineering, procurement, construction, installation, and commissioning of the FLRSU to Wison Offshore & Marine Ltd., Shanghai. The vessel will be built on the Caribbean coast of Colombia and in operation by yearend 2014, the contractor said.
The FLRSU will consist of a barge equipped to convert 69.5 MMscfd of natural gas into LNG (about 500,000 tonnes/year) that will be stored temporarily in onboard tanks with total capacity of 14,000 cu m. The LNG subsequently will be loaded either into permanently moored floating storage or shuttle tankers.
In a joint presentation by Pacific Rubiales and Exmar at CWC’s World LNG Series: Americas conference in April, Exmar’s Bart Lavent described the design in more detail.
He pegged the liquefaction capacity at 72 MMscfd, a bit more than the recent announcement, and the dedicated LNG carrier at 10,000-30,000 cu m. The two-train regas plant would nominally be able to produce 50 MMscfd. And, the nominal 14,000 cu m storage would consist of three, 4,700 cu m tanks.
Overall length of the unit would be about 124 m; breadth 32 m; depth 18 m; and draft about 4.5 m.
The unit will be moored to a jetty and supplied with gas by pipeline from onshore La Creciente field in the Lower Magdalena Valley basin.
Wison Offshore & Marine will design and engineer the unit in Shanghai with construction at its fabrication plant in Nantong, China. Black & Veatch will execute engineering and procurement of the topside liquefaction equipment and packages with its PRICO LNG technology and provide on site commissioning and start-up.
Contact Warren R. True at warrent@ogjonline.com.
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