CBM commissioning begins in Surat Basin

BG Group has begun commissioning its Surat Basin coalbed methane (CBM) processing network. The network will send supplies of gas to the Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG) project.

The CBM network is comprised of 17 field compressor stations and four central processing plants at three hubs in the Surat Basin: one each at Chinchilla, Wandoan, and Dalby.

One of the key central facilities, named the Ruby Jo processing plant, has a nameplate processing capacity of 440 million ft³ of gas. The other three plants are similar, and the system will transport gas through a 540 km buried pipeline to the QCLNG plant near Gladstone. The pipeline, made from over 46 000 lengths of 1 m dia. steel pipe, is the longest large-diameter buried pipeline in Australia.

The central processing plants and field compression stations have been constructed during the last 2 and a half years by 1500 engineers, civil works contractors, mechanics, welders, electricians, and others.

The first gas from the Surat Basin CBM field reached Curtis island in December 2013. BG Group chief Executive, Chris Finlayson, said “To have first gas on Curtis Island in a little over three years from project sanction is an immense achievement. It is a testament to the expertise and dedication of everyone working on this vast and complex mega-project.”

Gas will enter the system at the significant pressure of 10,000 kPa.

The AU$ 20.4 billion project is due to come on stream and start exports of LNG in December. When fully on stream the project will produce 8.5 million tpa of LNG.

BG says the project is still open to securing more third-party gas to feed into the pipelines.

Edited from various sources by Sam Dodson

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/cbm/07072014/cbm_commissioning_begins_in_surat_basin_cbm67/