New offshore LNG facility to meet clean energy needs
Posted: 15 August 2003
Looking to meet the growing demand for natural gas, BHP Billiton,
an Australia-based diversified natural resources company, announced
that following preliminary discussions it intends to file applications
with the United States Coast Guard/Maritime Administration (MARAD)
and the California State Lands Commission to construct and operate
a liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification facility.
The facility would be located more than 20 miles from Oxnard off
the Ventura County coast and would be developed by BHP Billiton
LNG International, Inc, a wholly owned subsidiary of BHP Billiton.
This deepwater facility — named Cabrillo Port — would
be the receiving point for shipments of 'California-bound' LNG.
Cabrillo Port would be a permanently moored facility — a floating
storage and regasification unit, or FSRU.
LNG will be stored onboard in traditional LNG storage tanks and
will be converted to natural gas through a heat exchange system,
and then transported by an undersea natural gas pipeline into the
existing pipeline system of the local gas utility.
The applications will seek to obtain a deepwater port license for
the right to operate the FSRU in U.S. coastal waters and a land
lease from the California State Lands Commission for the right to
construct an undersea pipeline to the shore to deliver the natural
gas into the local utility system.
The deepwater port license would be issued by MARAD, who is authorized
by the Secretary of Transportation to make a decision on the license
after it has been processed by the Coast Guard and MARAD.
"We've taken BHP Billiton's long-held expertise in operating
offshore floating production facilities and merged it with state
of the art LNG carrier, storage and regasification technology, in
order to be able to site an FSRU offshore that can deliver much
needed natural gas directly into California," said Stephen
Billiot, Vice President of BHP Billiton LNG International, Inc.
"We understand California's concern for its coastline and
its communities. Although LNG’s excellent safety record is
well documented, we are siting this much needed LNG facility far
offshore and away from population centers to ensure the highest
level of protection for the California coast and public safety,"
Mr. Billiot said.
Cabrillo Port will be based 21.5 miles offshore of the City of
Oxnard -- outside the existing shipping lanes and marine mammal
migratory patterns, as well as away from the Point Mugu U.S. naval
testing area and the Channel Island Marine Sanctuary. The FSRU will
be permanently moored to the ocean floor and connected to the shore
via a traditional natural gas pipeline. The natural gas pipeline
will come ashore in Ventura County, near Ormond Beach, and connect
directly into the local gas utility's pipeline system.
The FSRU design features three "Spherical Tanks" —
state of the art LNG storage tanks — with the capacity to
store the equivalent of 6 billion cubic feet of natural gas. The
FSRU will contain eight vaporizers to enable the conversion —
or regasification — of up to 1.5 billion cubic feet of natural
gas per day. Anticipated average send-out will be approximately
800 million cubic feet per day, or almost 15% of what California
requires every day.
Following the filing of the applications with both the Coast Guard
and State Lands Commission, BHP Billiton anticipates that both agencies
will take the lead, pursuant to federal and state environmental
laws, and undertake a joint and cooperative environmental and public
review process.
Following public review and approval, BHP Billiton expects the
design, fabrication and installation of necessary facilities to
allow for operations to commence by 2008.
BHP Billiton's Cabrillo Port provides a unique and environmentally
friendly alternative to meeting the energy and environmental demands
of California. Natural gas is a more efficient and cleaner burning
fuel than coal or oil, and the FSRU's offshore location minimizes
social and environmental impacts while providing a safer and less
intrusive locale for its operations.
BHP Billiton's applications for a deepwater port license and land
lease are the first step in a lengthy process that will include
other relevant permit applications, significant environmental review,
public hearings and community meetings. As part of BHP Billiton's
health, safety, environmental and community operating practices,
meetings will be held in appropriate public forums to discuss this
project with a wide variety of stakeholders in the region. These
will be set, disclosed and in compliance with all applicable regulations.
More fore information see http://www.bhpbilliton.com/.
Posted by Richard Price,
Editor Pipeline Magazine
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