LNG

Oman, the LNG producer and exporter, has signed an exploration and production sharing agreement with UK major Shell and French company TotalEnergies to explore, appraise and develop natural gas resources at Block 11 onshore the Sultanate on the Arabian Peninsula.

Oman LNG, the second main exporter in the Middle East, has named a new Chief Executive to replace Harib Al-Kitani, the long-standing incumbent who has overseen the return of stable feed-gas supplies and the updating of facilities and strategy.

A statement from the board at the Arabian Peninsula-based company said Al-Kitani would be stepping down and his successor and new CEO was named as Hamed Al-Numani.

Oman exports around 11 million tonnes per annum and its annual dispatch of cargoes covers the main importing nations.

“With a long successful journey of four decades in the industry, Al-Kitani’s experience has contributed tremendously in shaping Oman LNG as a reliable and trusted supplier,” said the board.

Al-Kitani is a veteran of the Sultanate of Oman’s energy industry and has been at Oman LNG from its inception in the late 1990s, holding a series of high-level positions.

“We wish him all the best in his retirement and a big thank you for all he has done to drive our success,” the statement added.

His successor Hamed Al-Numani comes with 20 years of energy industry experience with projects in Europe and the US.

Oman LNG’s customers include South Korea with around 3.9MT of annual supplies, Japan with about 3MT as well as other leading importers like China and India.

Cargo buyers also include Taiwan, Pakistan and Thailand.

The Thai national energy company, PTT Exploration and Production Public Company, has recently agreed to take a 20 percent stake in Oman’s upstream natural gas resources from BP of the UK centred on the onshore Block 61 comprising the ‎Khazzan field, which began production in 2017, and the Ghazeer field, onstream since October 2020.

Block 61, covering around 3,950 square kilometres in central Oman, contains the largest tight-gas ‎development in the Middle East.

Gas from the Block is sent for domestic consumption ‎into Oman’s national gas grid, while also boosting the availability of feed-gas for Oman ‎LNG.

Oman has also planned under Al-Kitani to become a major LNG bunkering nation from its port at Sohar in cooperation with French major Total.

The main Omani LNG export facilities are at the port of Sur. The plant comprises the three amalgamated liquefaction Trains of two former separate companies, Oman LNG and Qalhat LNG.

Al-Kitani also initiated plans for a de-bottlenecking project, whereby better output can be achieved by fixing inefficiencies, both technical and operational, and increasing Oman’s LNG output to 11.5 MTPA or more.

BP of the UK and Italian energy company Eni have signed an exploration and production sharing agreement with the Sultanate of Oman for a block in the centre of the country amid a revived domestic natural gas sector, rising liquefied natural gas exports and plans for a small-scale LNG plant for maritime fuel.

BP of the UK and Italian energy company Eni signed a heads of agreement with the Ministry of Oil and Gas of the Sultanate of Oman to work jointly towards a significant new exploration opportunity in the Arabian Peninsula nation where BP’s onshore Khazzan natural gas discovery revitalized LNG production.

BP said that under the accord, the two companies would work with Oman towards the award of a new exploration and production sharing agreement (EPSA) for Block 77 in central Oman.

BP and Eni will now enter discussions with the Ministry to finalise details.

“This would represent a further deepening of BP’s important position in Oman, building on our successful delivery of the major Khazzan project in 2017 and its second phase of development that is currently under construction,” said Bernard Looney, BP chief executive of the upstream division in reference to additional output achieved by Oman LNG from having sufficient domestic gas supplies.

“We look forward to continuing to explore and efficiently develop the country’s resources, working in close partnership with Eni and Oman to underpin our commitment to delivering long-term gas production for Oman,” he added.

The country’s three existing liquefaction Trains at the facilities near the town of Sur have been at full capacity since 2017 after previously suffering from a lack of feed-gas as supplies were diverted to fill domestic gas shortages.

The Omani government allocates Oman LNG supplies from various gas fields and the Khazzan field production has ended all feed-gas concerns for the near future.

The three Omani LNG processing Trains currently produce around 10.4 million tonnes per annum and supply nations such as Japan, South Korea, India and Kuwait.

Block 77, with a total area of almost 3,100 square kilometre, is located in central Oman, 30km east of the BP-operated Block 61, which contains the already-producing Khazzan gas project as well as the Ghazeer project currently under development.

The Khazzan natural gas field began production in 2017, under budget and ahead of schedule. Khazzan now produces around 1 billion cubic feet of gas a day.

The Ghazeer field is expected to add a further 0.5 bcf/d of production and is expected to come on stream in 2021.

BP has had an upstream presence in Oman since 2007 when it signed an exploration and production sharing agreement for Block 61.

Gas sales agreements and approval for the development of the Khazzan project on Block 61 were signed in 2013. In 2016, the EPSA for Block 61 was amended, adding a further 1,000 square kilometres and allowing a second phase of development.

June 25 (LNGJ) - US engineering company KBR was awarded a project management consultancy services contract by Oman LNG for a new 120 megawatts gas engine power plant aimed at reducing fuel gas consumption and emissions while maintaining LNG output at the liquefaction Trains located in the port of Sur. Under the terms, KBR will assist Oman LNG in the selection and management of the successful engineering, procurement and construction contractor for the project over a three year period. “We are proud of the pivotal role that KBR has played in the development of this project during the pre-FEED and FEED phases and are excited to continue to grow our substantial presence in the Middle East,” said Jay Ibrahim, KBR regional President.

French energy major Total has signed an accord with the Government of Oman to develop an LNG fuel supplies hub for the maritime industry with bunkering infrastructure and a small-scale production plant at Sohar port.

Bangladesh, the world’s newest liquefied natural gas importer with a floating regasification and storage unit provided by Excelerate Energy of the US at Moheshkhali Island on the Bay of Bengal, has signed an LNG supply agreement with the Sultanate of Oman.