bp starts full commercial operation of expanded Tangguh LNG plant

bp plc loaded and shipped the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) produced by the third liquefaction train at the Tangguh LNG plant, in Papua Barat, Indonesia.

The Oct. 18 shipment, to be delivered to Indonesia’s state-owned power generator PT PLN (Persero) at its regasification terminal in Arun, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam province, Indonesia, marks the start of full commercial operation of the expanded Tangguh LNG plant, the operator said in a release Oct. 19.

Start-up of Tangguh Train 3 will add 3.8 million tonnes/year (tpy) of LNG production capacity to the existing two-train plant, bringing total plant capacity to 11.4 million tpy (OGJ Online July 1, 2016).

Total gas production at Tangguh is expected to account for over a third of national gas production, said Dwi Soetjipto, chairman of SKK Migas, Indonesia’s oil and gas regulatory agency.

“Tangguh is the largest LNG producer in Indonesia and the production from Tangguh's three-train operation will significantly contribute to the national gas production target of 12 [billion scfd] by 2030.”

In addition to the new train, the Tangguh expansion project included construction of two offshore platforms, 13 new production wells, an LNG loading facility, and supporting infrastructure.

Carbon capture utilization and storage

With Train 3 completed and operational, the Tangguh partners are making progress towards Tangguh’s next planned phase of development, the UCC project that includes the adoption of carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) technology to help reduce CO₂ emissions.

The CCUS project could see about 25 million tonnes of CO₂ injected back into the Vorwata reservoir to reduce venting of up to 90% of the reservoir-associated CO₂—nearly half of the Tangguh LNG emissions—and provide incremental gas production through enhanced gas recovery, according to bp’s website. 

Tangguh LNG is sited in in Teluk Bintuni Regency in the Papua Barat Province of Indonesia. It has been in operation since 2009 (OGJ Online, July7, 2009). 

Tangguh is operated by BP Berau Ltd. on behalf of the other production sharing contract partners as contractor to SKK Migas.

BP Berau Ltd. and affiliates in Indonesia hold a 40.22% interest in the project. Production sharing contract partners are MI Berau BV (16.30%), CNOOC Muturi Ltd. (13.90%), Nippon Oil Exploration (Berau) Ltd. (12.23%), KG Berau Petroleum Ltd. and KG Wiriagar Petroleum Ltd. (10.00%), and Indonesia Natural Gas Resources Muturi Inc. (7.35%).