One of Abu Dhabi’s three LNG trains on Das Island will be shut down for maintenance for up to 50 days in November this year, Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC)’s LNG subsidiary ADGAS has said. The company plans to shut down Train 3, the largest of the units; this has an LNG production capacity of 4 million t/y, while the other two trains have a capacity of 2 million t/y each.
“Abu Dhabi’s plans to maintain and renovate its LNG export capacity is still in its early days, with a very tight domestic UAE gas market being an initial obstacle to increasing and perhaps even maintaining export,” explains Samuel Ciszuk, Middle East Energy analyst, IHS Global Insight.
Efforts to develop new parts of Abu Dhabi’s large gas reserves for domestic consumption have been slow, as much of them are highly sour and require innovative and expensive technologies to commercialise them. “Hence, the rationale for Abu Dhabi to even maintain export capacity now seems limited, although the Chiyoda study is understood to be looking at a potential completion of the facilities around 2019, when today’s sour gas production technologies might have become significantly cheaper,” explains Ciszuk.
As the current downturn subsides domestic demand for gas in both Abu Dhabi and neighbouring Dubai will have to be catered for. The primary significance of domestic growth is that actual exports might fall below the facility’s production capacity.
The company is also studying suggestions from Japanese engineering contractor Chiyoda Corp. on how the old LNG facility could be maintained, with either a thorough overhaul of the two oldest—smaller—trains, or their replacement by one new 4-million-t/y train.
Chiyoda was recently awarded a US$300 million long term engineering, procurement, construction and management (EPCm) service contract for LNG and gas processing plants in Qatar.
The deal with RasGas and Chiyoda Almana Engineering was confirmed in March. The four year contract contains the provision for a further year extension, and will see the company long term partner for small to medium sized projects for a total of seven LNG plants and two large-sized gas processing plants and other facilities owned by RasGas.
