LNG

Baker Hughes To Provide Compressor Train Duo to Petronas

The two LM9000-driven trains are part of the ZLNG nearshore floating LNG project.

Baker Hughes LM9000 gas turbine.PNG
Baker Hughes' LM9000 gas turbine under assembly.
SOURCE: Baker Hughes

Baker Hughes has been tapped by Black & Veatch, a subcontractor to the JGC and Samsung Heavy Industries consortium, to deliver two LM9000-driven compressor trains for the Petronas LNG facility in Sabah, Malaysia. The so-called ZLNG project is a nearshore floating LNG project that will join Petronas’ two existing FLNG vessels deployed in the same state.

Baker Hughes will provide two LM9000-powered compressor trains of 1 mtpa each. The contract also includes an order for spare parts. The 2-mtpa barge-based ZLNG facility will be built at Samsung’s Geoje Island yard with JGC handling the topsides construction. Delivery of the ZLNG facility is slated for mid-2027.

“Energy efficiency represents the biggest immediate opportunity for the industry to lower its carbon footprint, and the LM9000 is a great example of readily available technology that can instantly increase efficiency and reduce emissions,” said Alberto Matucci, vice president of gas technology equipment of industrial & energy technology at Baker Hughes.

Baker Hughes describes the aeroderivative gas turbine as the most powerful and most efficient in its class, 65+ MW, with simple cycle efficiency of 44% and a power output 15% higher compared to industry peers.

Samsung and JGC were awarded front-end engineering design contracts related to the ZLNG project in December 2021.

The nearshore LNG plant will increase Petronas’ LNG production from floating LNG facilities from 2.7 to 4.7 mtpa. Currently, Petronas operates two floating LNG facilities, the PFLNG SATU and PFLNG DUA, at the Kebabangan and Rotan offshore gas fields, respectively.