Lagos — Jafurah Gas Field Development will increase Saudi Arabia’s gas production by more than 4 billion cubic feet per day after the coming into stream of the two phases
The development, the first phase which began construction in the last quarter of 2022 and the second phase by the end of 2024 is considered of critical importance to Saudi Arabia to meet its growing domestic demand and the liquefied natural gas (LNG) export targets set by the Kingdom’s Ministry of Energy.
It is unusual for a project of the magnitude of the Jafurah Gas Field Development to have several construction phases taking place simultaneously. Only projects such as North Field in Qatar or Yamal LNG in Russia share this simultaneous construction in recent history.
Sarens has been involved in this project, providing its expertise for the transport and installation of 34 modules with a total weight of 18,535 tons, and for the transport and lifting of 108 heavy items weighing 12,283 tons.
The development of the two phases of the Jafurah Gas Field will result in a significant increase in Saudi Arabia’s gas production from approximately 14 billion cubic feet (bcfd) in 2025 to more than 18 billion cubic feet when the full infrastructure comes online in 2027, according to Saudi Aramco and the Saudi Ministry of Energy. Commissioned in the last quarter of 2022, this gas project is considered of vital importance to Saudi Arabia, with the aim of meeting its domestic gas demand, while at the same time meeting the LNG export targets set by the Ministry of Energy.
Although this is not the first time in history that two phases of a project of this magnitude have been carried out simultaneously, Saudi Aramco and the Ministry of Energy promoted a progressive schedule to optimise the necessary investments and infrastructure required for the simultaneous construction of both phases, taking into account that the first phase will be oriented towards the development of unconventional gas resources, while the second phase will have as its main objective the expansion and development of large-scale production. So far, only projects such as North Field in Qatar -in which Sarens was also involved- or Yamal LNG in Russia have worked on more than one development phase simultaneously.
Sarens, world leader in heavy lifting, engineered transport and crane rental services, is playing a strategic role in the construction of the Jafurah Gas Development. The company has been contracted by its client, Samsung Saudi Arabia, to provide transportation and heavy lifting services for the gas processing facility, one of the most important parts of the infrastructure, along with the LNG fractionation plant, the gas compression system and approximately 1,500 km network of main transfer pipelines, flow lines and gathering pipelines, which aim to ensure the reliable supply of natural gas and condensates.
In this project, Sarens has been in charge of transporting and lifting 34 modules, 30 piperacks and four process unit modules with electrical and mechanical equipment, with a total weight of 18,535 tons. The heaviest module transported weighed 1,100 tons and the tallest is up to 42 meters. The 108 heavy items transported and lifted weigh a total of 12,283 tons, with the heaviest item weighing 493 tons. After studying the work to be performed and considering the weight, length and height of the modules and equipment, the Sarens engineering team selected three cranes with lifting capacities of 1,250, 600 and 150 tons respectively, as well as a 120-axle SPMT (Self Propelled Modular Transport).
Phase 1 of Jafurah is expected to produce more than 2.5 bcfd on start-up, rising to 5 bcfd by the end of the decade, coinciding with the start-up of the second phase. In total, Jafurah is expected to generate more than 10 bcfd by 2030, helping Saudi Arabia consolidate its position as a world leader in natural gas, especially unconventional gas.
In addition, production from Jafurah will bring Saudi Arabia closer to its goal of reducing its dependence on oil for power generation and meeting the growing demand from intensive industries such as petrochemicals. In doing so, the Saudi Kingdom seeks to support its energy transition goals by contributing to the reduction of CO2 emissions in the supply chain.
Sarens has extensive experience internationally in the oil & gas sector. Together with McDermott, the company took part of the heavy lifting and load out operations at Jabel Ali as well as at Batam for Saudi Aramco’s Marjan Field Package 1, as well as the upgrade and improvement works of PT Pertamina refinery in Balikpapan, Indonesia. Also, for North Field Oil projects (Qatar Energy) Sarens was contracted by Seatrium to conduct the weighing, loadout and ballasting for two Bridges units, two Jackets and two Topsides utilizing up to 132 a/l for the Gallaf 2 project in Batam, Indonesia.
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