A $10 billion floating LNG (FLNG) plant off the West Australian coast near Exmouth has received federal government approval to proceed.
BHP and ExxonMobil will now conduct early engineering design work on the Scarborough gas deposit with a decision on final investment expected to be made by 2015.
Speaking to the Australian Financial Review, an Exxon company spokesperson said, “ExxonMobil is in the early stages of developing the Scarborough project and significant progress has been made.”
The project will be the largest FLNG facility in the world at 495 meters long, 75 meters wide and capable of processing between six to seven million tonnes of LNG per year from 12 wells.
Australia is currently leading the world in FLNG technology, an extraction method that involves offshore gas fields being drilled and exploited from a large purpose-built ship anchored over the well sites.
Several FLNG projects are currently in the pre-feasibility or planning stages off the West Australian and Northern Territory coasts.
Add Comment