Anadarko Petroleum Corp. is poised to select a construction team led by Chicago Bridge & Iron Co. as its main contractor for a potential $15 billion Mozambique liquefied natural gas project, according to people familiar with the matter.
CB&I and its engineering and construction partners will work with the Woodlands, Texas-based explorer to begin project planning with the East African nation’s government, according to the people who asked not to be identified because the information isn’t yet public. Anadarko has said it will make a final investment decision on whether to proceed with the project by the end of the year.
The selection of CB&I’s group to build the export project is a key step in the process of developing one of the biggest oil and gas discoveries in a generation, one that has the potential to reshape East Africa and global markets.
The decision is a milestone for one of the few energy mega-projects around the world to move forward after crude prices collapsed last year. Companies have halted spending on many such projects to conserve cash, reducing spending by more than $100 billion amid the worst oil market downturn in a generation.
CB&I and Anadarko declined to comment on the contract.
As much as 75 trillion cubic feet of natural gas may lie in the Area 1 prospect off Mozambique’s shores, according to Anadarko and its partners developing the discovery. That’s enough to meet about 15 years of U.S. residential demand, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Anadarko and Eni SpA are operators in Areas 1 and 4 of Mozambique’s Rovuma Basin, home of the world’s largest gas find of the past decade. The East African nation could become the third-largest exporter of the liquefied fuel, after Qatar and Australia.
The first two LNG trains planned by Anadarko to chill the gas for export will have a capacity of 5 million metric tons a year each and cost between $8 billion and $10 billion, according to Anadarko. The company has said the offshore development is expected to cost about $5 billion.
Recommended Reading
TotalEnergies Starts Production at Akpo West Offshore Nigeria
2024-02-07 - Subsea tieback expected to add 14,000 bbl/d of condensate by mid-year, and up to 4 MMcm/d of gas by 2028.
Well Logging Could Get a Makeover
2024-02-27 - Aramco’s KASHF robot, expected to deploy in 2025, will be able to operate in both vertical and horizontal segments of wellbores.
Shell Brings Deepwater Rydberg Subsea Tieback Onstream
2024-02-23 - The two-well Gulf of Mexico development will send 16,000 boe/d at peak rates to the Appomattox production semisubmersible.
E&P Highlights: Feb. 26, 2024
2024-02-26 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including interest in some projects changing hands and new contract awards.
Remotely Controlled Well Completion Carried Out at SNEPCo’s Bonga Field
2024-02-27 - Optime Subsea, which supplied the operation’s remotely operated controls system, says its technology reduces equipment from transportation lists and reduces operation time.