INPEX has selected the subsea contractors to compete for one of four major work packages linked to the multi-billion-dollar Abadi liquefied natural gas project in Indonesia.
TechnipFMC, Worley and a consortium between Singgar Mulia and Doris Engineering — the last with the support of Asiatek Energi Mitratama — have successfully pre-qualified to bid for the frontend engineering and design contract for the Abadi offshore gas export pipeline, contracting sources said.
The 150-kilometre, 16-inch subsea gas pipeline will transport dry gas from the offshore field to the onshore LNG facility. The invitation to tender will be issued to the three parties in late March. Chiyoda and Synergy Engineering previously performed the preFEED for the gas export pipeline and the subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines.
Sources said a prequalification exercise will get under way shortly for the SURF component of the project. The companies that prequalify will then be invited to compete for the SURF FEED contract. For the gas export pipeline, TechnipFMC and Worley have long track records in Indonesia, so the pairing of Singgar Mulia and Doris did well to be chosen ahead of a number of well-credentialed subsea engineering companies which missed the cut.
Singgar Mulia and Doris have previously carried out subsea FEED scopes and detailed design work in Indonesia, but it was some years ago for Total’s projects on the Mahakam block — with Inpex also a joint venture partner in Mahakam. During Inpex’s development of the large Ichthys field in Australia, contracting sources said Doris established a strong relationship with Inpex through a range of workscopes carried out in joint venture with Clough over a nine-year period. Doris and Clough performed Ichthys engineering works from the end of the pre-FEED stage until project start-up, as well as integrated project management services to Inpex.
Sources said that Doris is also competing to support Inpex in the next phases of the Ichthys project. The field layout for the Abadi complex is relatively similar to the Ichthys field. Water depths at the Abadi fields within the Masela production sharing contract area range from 400 metres to 800 metres.
The subsea architecture of the project will be connected to a giant floating production, storage and offloading vessel, and the gas export pipeline will connect to a newbuild onshore liquefaction facility. Bidding lists for the FEED contracts on the FPSO and LNG facility are delayed because Inpex had to revise certain pre-qualification requirements, said sources.
Contracting sources said previously that at least two bidding groups will be selected for the FPSO and LNG plant to compete in front-end engineering and design contests. Some of the world’s largest oilfield services companies have long-established footprints in Indonesia through their locally-registered subsidiaries, including Saipem, McDermott International, JGC, KBR and Fluor. In addition, there are wellknown domestic construction outfits including Rekayasa Industri, Singgar Mulia, Gunanusa, Bakrie, VME, Pal and Utraco that could compete for work.
The Abadi FPSO is envisaged as being able to handle 1.8 billion cubic feet per day of gas and have the capacity to process 36,000 barrels per day of condensate. As for the LNG plant, the twotrain facility will be designed to produce 9.5 million tonnes per annum of LNG. Pre-FEED work for the liquefaction plant was performed last year by KBR, while TechnipFMC carried out pre-FEED studies on the FPSO.
Inpex — headed by chief executive Takayuki Ueda — is working toward a start-up schedule in the latter half of the 2020s. The Abadi field contains estimated reserves of at least 10 trillion cubic feet of gas.
