Saipem Hired for S African Gas Project
Italian offshore contractor Saipem has won a front-end engineering design contract for the Virginia gas project in South Africa from Johannesburg-based Renergen, it said on January 27.
Saipem will design facilities to produce LNG and liquefied helium, including a gas purification unit, a gas liquefaction unit that uses its LiqueflexTM-N2 technology, product storage and offloading units and associated utilities. These facilities will be built as part of Virginia's second phase.
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Virginia comprises various gas fields across Welkom, Virginia and Theunissen in South Africa's Free State containing high quantities of helium. The helium will be shipped overseas while the LNG will be used locally, primarily in vehicle transport. In February last year, Renergen agreed to supply LNG to South Africa's Bulk Hauliers International Transport. And in June, Renergen signed a deal with France's Total on joint marketing and distribution of LNG at filling stations.
The project's first phase is due online later this year, while its second should start up in 2023.