World Pipelines - September 2014 - page 75

AUSTRALIA
David Boustead and Niels Asjee, Boskalis, the Netherlands,
discuss a gas export pipeline
project in Australia and the succesful execution of operations in challenging conditions.
I
n September 2008, Darwin in Australia’s Northern
Territory (locally known as the ‘top end’) was chosen
as the location for the onshore LNG processing
plant for the Ichthys LNG Project. The Ichthys Field
is located in the Browse Basin, off the north west coast of
Western Australia, approximately 820 km south west of
Darwin. In order to get gas and condensate to the processing
plant, an 889 km, 42 in. dia. gas export pipeline (GEP) will be
laid. This will be the longest subsea pipeline in the southern
hemisphere.
The Ichthys LNG Project is a joint venture between INPEX
group companies (the operator), major partner TOTAL and
the Australian subsidiaries of Tokyo Gas, Osaka Gas, Chubu
Electric Power and Toho Gas.
International oil and gas contracting service provider
Saipem is the engineering, procurement, construction and
installation (EPCI) contractor for the Ichthys LNG Project’s GEP.
Boskalis was chosen by Saipem to perform the pre-lay
dredging, including pre-sweeping works, construction of the
shore approach and the shore pull of the pipeline into the
shore approach. After pipeline installation, Boskalis will install
a large quantity of filter and armour rock over a 16 km section
to protect the pipeline through Darwin Harbour.
The shore pull was completed in July and, in order for
Boskalis to commence the rock installation, Saipem started
shallow water pipelay and dredging spreads were demobilised
as preparations for the rock load out facility started to get
into full swing.
IN
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