In indigenous firm, UTM Offshore, has signed a Preliminary Front End Engineering Design (Pre-FEED) Agreement with Japan Gas Corporation (JGC), an international Engineering Design, Procurement and Construction firm.
The signing of the Pre-FEED signals a bold step by UTM Offshore follows the issuance of licence by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to the firm to establish a Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) facility, the first of its kind in the country.
The firm also announced that it has engaged Kellogg Brown and Root (KBR), United Kingdom, to provide owner’s engineering Services on the project. KBR shall provide due diligence on the JGC scope by conducting a third-party review of all deliverables from JGC during the Pre-FEED
Speaking at the virtual signing event, the Managing Director of UTM Offshore Limited, Mr. Julius Rone said: “what UTM is doing is largely novel. It is the first of its kind in Nigeria and we are very excited about this trail-blazing project; the opportunity to build from the scratch, the first Floating Liquefied Natural Gas Facility in Nigeria is humongous. That is why we cannot afford to settle for less hence our resolve to contract JGC Corporation, one of the leading firms in the LNG Construction sector in the world, to provide the Pre-Front End Engineering Design Services for this first Floating LNG facility in Nigeria.”
UTM Offshore Limited is pioneering the development of the FLNG facility in collaboration with LNG Investment Management Services (LIMS), a subsidiary of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The facility, a newly built vessel, will receive gas feedstock from an existing offshore facility, treat it to required LNG standard, liquefy the gas, store the LNG and offload to LNG carriers.
According Rone, the floating LNG, when fully completed shall have an LNG production capacity of 1.2 mmtpa, Turret and Mooring System, Gas pre-treatment modules, LNG production modules, living quarters, self-contained power generation and utilities as well as capacities for LNG storage and offloading.
He thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for creating an enabling environment for indigenous firms, like UTM Offshore, to equitably operate in the very sensitive and competitive upstream sector of the petroleum industry. He said that the resolve of UTM Offshore to embark on the huge project is steeped in the National Gas Policy of the Buhari administration.
“At UTM Offshore, we completely agree with Mr. President that given Nigeria’s potential of about 600 trillion cubic feet of gas, the commodity has the enormous potential to diversify our country’s economy. We also agree that the rising global demand for cleaner energy sources has offered Nigeria an opportunity to exploit gas resources for the good of the country. We thank the President for making gas development and utilization a national priority to stimulate economic growth, further improve Nigeria’s energy mix, drive investments, and provide the much-needed jobs for our citizens in the country,” Rone said.
