Australia: Clough DORIS Gets LOI for Ichthys LNG

Engineering and construction company Clough Limited today announced the receipt of a Letter of Intent for a contract valued in excess of A$250 million to the Clough DORIS Joint Venture (CDJV) for the provision of Offshore Integrated Project Management Support Services (IPMS) for the Ichthys LNG Project.

CDJV is a 50:50% joint venture between Clough and French offshore engineering specialists, DORIS Engineering.

The commencement of work is subject to execution of a binding contract and a Final Investment Decision (FID) for the Ichthys LNG Project by the joint venture participants, INPEX and Total. It includes overseeing, in an integrated team with INPEX, the detailed engineering design, procurement, fabrication, at-shore commissioning, tow to site, and offshore hook-up of the Central Processing Facility (CPF) and floating production, storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) for the project.

Under this Letter of Intent, pre-FID expenditure is limited for CDJV to the commencement of activities required to mobilise a technical team of engineers to support the Ichthys Project. It is anticipated that this team will grow to approximately 300 personnel during the fabrication phase of the project. Full mobilisation is due to commence immediately following FID for the Ichthys Project scheduled for Q4 2011.

“Clough is delighted to be chosen by the Ichthys Joint Venture to provide IPMS services to this world class offshore facility. We will utilise Clough’s proven project management systems and the complementary strengths of both Clough and DORIS to deliver on the technical, project management and resourcing challenges associated with this landmark Australian LNG project,” said Clough CEO John Smith.

“The DORIS Engineering Group is proud to be associated with Clough to execute this IPMS contract on behalf of the Ichthys Joint Venture, for a very challenging project. Our vast experience in deepwater floating structures and gas treatment facilities will be extensively used throughout this contract,” said Chairman and CEO of DORIS Engineering, Loïc des Déserts.

The Ichthys LNG Project is a Joint Venture between INPEX (76%, the Operator) and Total (24%). Gas from the Ichthys Field, in the Browse Basin approximately 200 kilometres offshore of Western Australia, will undergo preliminary processing offshore to remove water and extract condensate. The gas will then be exported to onshore processing facilities in Darwin via an 885km subsea pipeline. The Ichthys Project is expected to produce 8.4 million tonnes of LNG and 1.6 million tonnes of LPG per annum, along with 100,000 barrels of condensate per day at peak.