Ichthys LNG project reaches milestone with startup of offshore power generators

GEOJE, South Korea -- The INPEX-led Ichthys LNG project has reached a key milestone with both its central processing facility (CPF) and FPSO facility safely starting up their main power generators in the South Korean shipyards where they are being constructed.

Today, in the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in Geoje, the CPF’s three generators run by 25 MW dual-fuel gas turbines energized the facility’s distribution network. The CPF milestone followed the FPSO’s main turbo-generators being started up on July 28 at the nearby Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering yard in Okpo.

Ichthys Project Managing Director Louis Bon said this achievement signaled commissioning was well underway for the two facilities.

“Starting up the main generators of the FPSO and CPF allows the commissioning to further progress by providing the required power for both massive offshore facilities,” he said. “These milestones have been safely reached thanks to the highest safety standards being implemented on the Project and the technical skills of teams on site and supporting from Perth.”

Following the successful firing of the main power generation units, the focus will now be on load testing, synchronization and commissioning of the power distribution systems for both offshore facilities. This will allow the permanent utilities on board each facility to be made fully available.

The CPF and FPSO will be permanently moored for 40 years of operation in Ichthys field, in the Timor Sea, about 220 km off the coast of western Australia.

Gas will undergo initial processing on the CPF to extract condensate and water, and remove impurities in order to make the gas suitable for transmission. Most condensate will be transferred from the CPF to the nearby FPSO for offshore processing, with the remainder sent to Darwin, with the gas, via the project’s 890-km gas export pipeline. More condensate will be extracted from the gas at the onshore plant in Darwin.

Once in the field, the FPSO and CPF will be linked by an electric cable, allowing power to flow from each facility as a contingency measure.