Eni’s Tango FLNG is expected to arrive in Angola’s Luanda during the weekend as the Italian firm works to launch the first FLNG project in the Republic of Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, according to Belgium’s Exmar.
In August last year, Eni signed a deal to buy the 144 meters long Tango FLNG from Exmar.
The floating LNG producer, delivered in 2017 by China’s Wison, has a liquefaction capacity of about 1 billion cubic meters per year of gas, or 0.6 mtpa, and a storage capacity of 16,100 cbm.
Last month, officials from Eni, Exmar, Congo’s SNPC, and Drydocks World gathered to celebrate the sail away of the FLNG and also the Excalibur FSU from Dubai to Congo.
Exmar serves as the engineering, procurement and conversion (EPC) contractor for this project, and has designed the mooring system and performed the refurbishments on both vessels at the Drydocks World yard.
Also, Exmar provides the FSU on a long-term charter and will be responsible for all terminal operations on the Congo LNG project.
According to its AIS data provided by VesselsValue, the 2002-built 138,034, Excalibur, was on Thursday located offshore Luanda and is expected to arrive in Pointe Noire on Friday.
On the other hand, the FLNG is being transported onboard Seaway 7’s heavy-lift vessel, Seaway Swan.
“Arrival is scheduled in Luanda coming weekend to then have a subsequent wet tow to Pointe Noire, Congo,” Jonathan Raes, Exmar’s executive director infrastructure, told LNG Prime on Thursday.
Tango FLNG will be moored three kilometers offshore along with the Excalibur FSU upon their arrival in Congo.
Raes confirmed that the first gas from the Congo LNG project is expected by the end of this year.
The Congo LNG project leverages Marine XII gas resources and existing production facilities in a new, phased approach that will allow to reach about 4.5 bcm per year of gas liquefaction capacity at plateau, as well as zero routine gas flaring, Eni previously said.
A second FLNG vessel with a capacity of about 3.5 bcm per year of gas, or 2.4 mtpa, is under construction in China and is expected to begin production in 2025.
Wison Offshore & Marine won a contract from Eni in December last year to build the 380 meters long FLNG and officially started work on the project on January 17, 2023.
The unit will be able to store over 180,000 cubic meters of LNG.
Eni said the Congo LNG project will help Congo meet its energy needs while seizing the opportunity to exploit surplus gas through LNG production, allowing the country to join the group of global exporters of LNG in record time.
According to the agreements recently signed, all LNG produced will be marketed by Eni.
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