BP’s Greater Tortue Ahmeyim FLNG project located offshore Mauritania and Senegal is about 85 percent complete, according to project partner Kosmos Energy.
Texas-based Kosmos said in its quarterly results report that the construction work on the first phase of the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim LNG project continued to progress during the July-September period.
The project includes the conversion of Golar LNG’s Gimi to a floating LNG producer at Singapore’s Keppel shipyard and the construction of the FPSO by Technip Energies at COSCO Shipping’s Qidong yard in China.
Kosmos said in the update that the FLNG is “on track for sailaway in first half of 2023 as construction and mechanical completion activities continue and commissioning work has begun.”
The 2.5 mtpa Gimi FLNG will serve BP’s Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project under a 20-year deal.
Golar said in August that the conversion was about 86 percent technically complete.
First LNG in 2023
In September, BP’s GTA FPSO returned to the quayside of the Cosco shipyard in China after it drifted off due to the impact of Typhoon Muifa.
“The forward plan is to complete all inspections and incorporate any findings into mechanical completion activities along with commissioning work prior to sailaway, which is expected around the end of the year,” Kosmos said in the update.
“The operator is working hard and making good progress to overcome the challenges from Covid, supply chain constraints and more recently Typhoon Muifa,” it said.
Kosmos added that the partners expect first gas around nine months from the FPSO sailaway and continue to target first LNG around year-end 2023.
Besides the works at the two yards, construction work continues to progress offshore Mauritania and Senegal.
France’s Eiffage Genie Civil previoulsy said it completed the central platform of the hub located 10 km from the coast on the Mauritania-Senegal border.
The hub includes the berthing facilities for the FLNG and the breakwater.
Kosmos said in the update that the hub is “largely complete with the living quarters platform installed and commissioning activities commenced.”
In addition, Kosmos said that the shallow water gas export pipeline from the FPSO to the hub terminal had been installed.
“The deepwater pipelay vessel is in the region conducting final testing prior to mobilization which is expected in the coming weeks to lay the deepwater pipeline and in-field flowlines,” it said.
LNG cargoes, Phase 2 plans
To optimize the commercial value of sales for the gas production from the first phase of Greater Tortue Ahmeyim, Kosmos has commenced a process with prospective buyers to utilize existing contractual rights under the company’s Phase 1 LNG sales agreement.
Kosmos said it plans to sell LNG cargoes in order to benefit from the robust forward gas price outlook.
“We are seeing significant interest in the opportunity and will provide further updates as the discussions mature,” it said.
Besides the first phase, the partners are also working on the second phase of the project.
Kosmos is in “advanced discussions” with partners BP, Petrosen, SMH and the two governments on the right concept.
In light of the rapidly evolving global LNG markets, the governments are rightly considering the importance of their gas resource and the opportunity to build new government-to-government relationships, the firm said.
“The partnership’s aim in the coming months is to agree the right low cost solution, which leverages the infrastructure from Phase 1 and allows the partnership to access attractive gas marketing opportunities,” Kosmos said.