US-based Sempra Infrastructure is progressing with plans for a floating LNG production plant off the west coast of Mexico and is sifting offers from shipbuilders on a unit.
TradeWinds understands that Belgian gas shipowner and infrastructure provider Exmar has been overseeing a tender for shipbuilders on behalf of the US company — an arm of LNG producer Sempra Energy.
Companies have been invited to submit initial offers on an FLNG unit of between 3.4m and 3.6m tonnes per annum capacity that could be used for Sempra’s Vista Pacifico LNG project based in Topolobampo, Sinaloa.
Sources said four yards were originally pursuing the business. They named South Korean shipbuilders Samsung Heavy Industries and Hanwha Ocean, China’s Wison New Energies along with Seatrium from Singapore.
Since then, just three — SHI, Wison and Seatrium — are said to have moved on to the front-end engineering and design phase.
Exmar is being described as the “construction partner” on the project and is understood to be working on an exclusive basis. Company officials declined to comment when approached about the business.
Sempra wants to develop a nearshore or jetty-moored FLNG-based development that would use US pipeline gas as supply, on what it describes as a greenfield site.
Cargoes would be exported to supply LNG to customers in Asia, South America and Baja, California.
Sempra Infrastructure has already received authorisation in late 2022 from the US Department of Energy to export pipeline gas for the project to re-export up to 200bn cubic feet per annum of LNG from Mexico to any country with which the US does not have a free trade agreement.
The company is working on the development of Vista Pacifico LNG in collaboration with Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission.
Permitting for the project was due to start in mid-2024 but the US freeze on new liquefaction developments could slow progress.
Berth space for FLNG units is in short supply but highly sought after at shipyards.
There are four under construction. Samsung Heavy Industries is building a 3.3-mtpa unit for Canada’s newly greenlighted Cedar LNG and a 2-mtpa floater for Petronas’ ZFLNG project.
Wison New Energies is constructing two smaller units — a 2.4 mtpa floater for Eni’s project in the Republic of Congo and a recently confirmed 1.2-mtpa unit for Genting Oil & Gas’ development in Indonesia.
Aside from these, other projects are awaiting the go-ahead, which would also mop up berth and outfitting space at yards that are prepared to undertake the more complex jobs of building FLNG units.
Companies such as Delfin Midstream — which is developing FLNG-based business in the US Gulf — the Eni-led investors in the Coral Nord development off Mozambique, Western LNG and partners Petronas and YPF in Argentina are all planning to use floater newbuildings to monetise gas reserves.
Others like Golar LNG have their eye on conversions.
There are currently six FLNG units in operation globally, with the combined capacity to produce close to 13 mtpa of LNG.
A seventh offshore rig-based unit controlled by New Fortress Energy — technically not a floater — is in the process of firing up its production and Golar’s 2.3-mtpa Gimi is awaiting start-up for BP’s Tortue FLNG project on the maritime border of Senegal and Mauritania.
FLNG players have estimated that by the end of this decade, there could be more than 60 mtpa of LNG being produced from about 18 FLNG units.
