SAMSUNG ready to start work on second floating LNG platform

Seoul, 4 Jun (AIM) – The construction will begin soon of a second floating platform for the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the Rovuma Basin, off the coast of the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado.

This promise was given in Seoul on Monday by the deputy chairperson of Samsung Heavy Industries, Byoungsun Lee, shortly after an audience granted by Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi, who is on a four day working visit to South Korea.

According to Byoungsun Lee, the start of building the new platform is only waiting for approval by the Mozambican government, which should be granted shortly.

“We are anxious for the opportunity to build a second floating LNG platform for Mozambique”, he said. “We are waiting for the Mozambican government to approve the Development Plan. If it is approved now, then we can be thinking about beginning construction of the platform in the third quarter of 2024”.

Byoungsun Lee announced that the new platform will have an installed capacity to produce 3.4 million tonnes of LNG a year. This is the same capacity as that of the Coral Sul floating platform, which was built by the same Korean company, and has been operational since late 2022.

Byoungsun Lee said Samsung is working with its consortium partners, namely Technic of France, which provides services in hydrocarbon research and exploitation, and JDC of Japan, a company specialized in offshore drilling.

“So we are making the preparations to embark on the construction of the platform”, he guaranteed.

In a brief contact with the Deputy Minister of Mineral Resources, Antono Saide, he told AIM that it is up to the operator to express an interest in building a second floating platform.

In 2012, the Italian energy company, ENI, discovered enormous deposits of natural gas in the Coral Sul field, in Area Four of the Rovuma Basin. ENI is the operator with an indirect participation of 50 per cent through ENI East Africa, which has a 70 per cent holding in Area Four.

The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has an indirect participation of 20 per cent, also through ENI East Africa. The Korean company Kogas, Galp of Portugal and Mozambique’s own National Hydrocarbon Company (ENH), each have a holding of ten per cent in the project.

(AIM)

Sg/mz/pf (389)