Fluor Corp. is executing engineering, procurement and fabrication management for two phases of New Fortress Energy Inc.’s first offshore natural gas export plant in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Grand Isle, La. The project includes adding gas treatment and liquefaction units on fixed offshore platforms, which the developer says could export about 2.8 million tons per year of LNG. It awarded Fluor a contract for an undisclosed amount for the second phase in mid-July, following an earlier award in the first quarter. The developer projects first-phase operation in early 2023. No target date was disclosed for the second.
Using repurposed drilling jack-up rigs as their bases, the modular plants are part of New Fortress Energy's stated plan to access multiple global natural gas sources. The design “facilitates repeatable project models,” said Jim Breuer, Fluor Energy Solutions group president. “We’re well positioned to support the increased worldwide demand for LNG,” Fluor CEO David Constable told analysts Aug. 5. “We’re looking at it as a very long-term play.” New Fortress also said it plans up to four similar projects off Mexico’s Gulf Coast, but earlier this year it paused a proposed $800-million liquefaction plant in Pennsylvania due to strong opposition.