Shell has received approval from Australian regulator Nopsema to restart its giant Prelude FLNG located offshore Australia, following an incident in December last year.
The firm had suspended production at the giant FLNG after the incident on December 2.
After that, Australian offshore regulator Nopsema had visited the FLNG facility giving Shell four directions the firm needed to complete prior to restarting the giant unit.
Nopsema said it has closed the directions issued to Shell on December 23, 2021.
The approval does not mean that Shell would immediately bring the floating LNG producer back online.
LNG Prime contacted Shell for a comment. A Shell spokesperson did not comment on when the company would restart the FLNG.
In February, chief executive Ben van Beurden told media during a call that Shell had expected the Prelude FLNG, “to be out for most of the first quarter.“
Prelude shipped its first cargo in June 2019 after several start-up delays. The FLNG has the capacity to produce 3.6 mtpa of LNG, 1.3 mtpa of condensate, and 0.4 mtpa of LPG.
Shell operates the floating facility with a 67.5 percent stake. Japan’s Inpex holds a 17.5 percent stake, Korea’s Kogas 10 percent, and Taiwan’s CPC holds 5 percent.
