Wison celebrates steel-cutting for Eni's Congo FLNG Unit
China's Wison Heavy Industry celebrated a significant milestone on July 3 with the steel-cutting ceremony for the topsides of a 2.4mn metric tons/year floating LNG (FLNG) unit that Italy’s Eni will deploy in the Republic of Congo, Wison said on July 4.
The ceremony took place at the Zhoushan yard in China and was attended by Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua, the minister of hydrocarbons for the Republic of Congo. The 380 m long and 60 m wide vessel will be anchored at a water depth of around 40 m and will be able to store over 180,000 m3 of LNG and 45,000 m3 of LPG.
This FLNG project represents a significant development for the Republic of Congo, as it will be the second FLNG unit to be deployed in the country. The first one, the Tango FLNG, has a capacity of 0.6mn mt/yr, with LNG production expected to commence in 2023. Eni reported last year that the addition of the second FLNG unit will bring the overall LNG production capacity of Marine XII project to 3mn mt/yr by 2025.
Since the official start of the FLNG project in January this year, the construction of storage tanks and the hull has begun and is proceeding according to the plan, Wison said.
The Republic of Congo is expanding its LNG production capabilities and further harnessing its natural gas resources. Last month, the African nation signed a cooperation agreement with Technip Energies, a French energy services provider, to expand their collaboration in offshore and onshore energy developments.
Under the agreement, Technip Energies will provide its expertise to enhance the capacities of the national oil company in various areas. This includes process engineering for oil and water treatment facilities, gas processing facilities, offshore and onshore platforms and installations such as semi-submersible rigs, LNG trains, fertilizer plants, and refineries.