Boskalis Bags Scarborough Contract

Australia’s Woodside, operator of the Scarborough joint venture, has awarded a €145mn ($162mn) contract to Boskalis Australia to undertake seabed intervention and shore crossing works for the proposed Scarborough export gas pipeline, Boskalis said July 30.

The preparatory activities for the project have commenced recently. The seabed intervention and shore crossing works are scheduled to start in March 2021 with an expected completion mid-2022, it added.

The scope of activities includes the pre-trenching of the nearshore pipeline route along a 50 km section, offshore deep water excavation works, pre-lay and post-lay rock installation for pipeline and fiber optic cable crossings, the post installation burial and other protection works to ensure the stability of the pipeline. Support for the shore crossing to the onshore processing facility on the Burrup Peninsula as well as rock supply are also part of the contract.

Woodside CEO Peter Coleman in a separate statement said the award of the seabed intervention contract is another step towards unlocking the value of the Scarborough gas resource. “Western Australia has played a vital role in supplying resources to the world and that role is now more important than ever as we are faced with the dual challenge of providing extra energy and cleaner energy for global and domestic markets,” he said.

The Scarborough gas field is situated approximately 375 km offshore the Burrup Peninsula in northwest Australia. The proposed export pipeline will transport natural gas between the Scarborough floating production unit and the onshore processing plant. Woodside’s preferred development option is to process the Scarborough gas through a brownfield expansion of Pluto LNG.