Woodside plans Pluto LNG expansion

Australian LNG player Woodside is aiming to increase production at its Pluto liquefied natural gas export plant in Western Australia.

“We are evaluating opportunities to maximise our investment in Pluto LNG by undertaking further capacity enhancements and mid-scale or large-scale expansion,” said Woodside CEO Peter Coleman.

Pluto is expandable for at least one conventional LNG train from existing natural gas resources, according to the CEO.

“In addition, we are planning for the construction of infrastructure that will enable us to supply LNG from Pluto to fuel the local mining and marine sectors. This is part of our broader objective of growing the LNG market,” Coleman added.

The Pluto LNG export plant produced 5 million mt during 2016, 16% above its original design capacity, Woodside said in its full-year results report on Wednesday.

The project processes gas from the offshore Pluto gas field, with gas piped through a 180 km trunkline to a single onshore processing train in the Burrup LNG Park, located between the North West Shelf Venture and Dampier Port.

The project is a joint venture between Woodside, the operator, which has a 90% interest, and Tokyo Gas and Kansai Electric with a 5% stake each, respectively.

LNG World News Staff