- Equinor has awarded Aibel an EPCI contract for modification work at the Hammerfest LNG facility on behalf of the Snøhvit Unit partners*. The contract has a total value of approx. NOK 8 billion.
According to the company’s website new release on February 14, 2023, The EPCI contract comprises engineering, procurement, construction and installation in connection with the Snøhvit Future project, and the scope includes a land-based compression facility and electrification of the Hammerfest LNG plant. The assignment was an option in the FEED contract (Front-End Engineering and Design) that Aibel was awarded in September 2020.
The contract award is subject to regulatory approval of the project.
Aibel will in addition execute further upgrades of existing systems at Hammerfest LNG to prepare the facility for extended life until 2050.
Aibel was the main contractor for the extensive recovery that followed the fire at the facility in September 2020, where Aibel rapidly mobilised around 170 engineers and more than 1,000 operators in rotation to the facility.
“We have been Equinor’s main supplier of maintenance and modification services at Hammerfest LNG since 2006, and our employees have gained good insight into the plant and developed great relationships with Equinor. We have also gained extensive experience from similar modifications and electrification assignments and are very grateful that Equinor selects us as the main contractor in the development of the future LNG facility at Melkøya,” says President and CEO of Aibel, Mads Andersen.
Engineering will start immediately, and Aibel will utilize the organisation from the FEED contract at the office in Asker, in combination with expertise from the modification organisation on the Norwegian west coast and North Norway. At its peak, the project will involve approx. 350 engineers and project personnel.
Aibel will plan and execute large and complex modifications at the facility, and this will require around 1,200 man-years throughout the construction and installation phase at Hammerfest LNG. In addition, construction of larger modules will take place at Aibel’s yards. Most of the work will be in the period 2024-2026.
Aibel will award several major building and construction contracts this year and next year for civil work at the facility, and use of local suppliers will be key in many of the project phases. Norconsult will be responsible subcontractor for engineering of building and construction work.
Aibel’s part of the project is scheduled for completion in late 2027.
* The Snøhvit Unit partners are: Equinor Energy AS (operator), Petoro AS, TotalEnergies E&P Norge AS, Neptune Energy Norge AS and Wintershall Dea Norge AS.
