Integrating an LNG Plant with an Unconventional Gas Supply

Arrow Energy is a JV company based in Brisbane, Australia, that is owned 50/50 by the Shell group and PetroChina (a subsidiary of CNPC). Arrow is planning to develop its tenement holdings of Coal Seam Gas (CSG) in the Surat and Bowen Basins of central Queensland. The CSG will be produced at very low pressures from shallow wells, gathered and compressed into two 500 km trunk-lines for delivery to a two train LNG plant, with each train sized at 4.0 mtpa capacity. The LNG plant will be located on Curtis Island, opposite Gladstone harbour, in Queensland. CSG is classed as “unconventional” gas; this is the first time that Shell or PetroChina have designed an LNG plant with an unconventional gas feed. The paper discusses the unique aspects of integrating an LNG plant with this unconventional gas feed.