The most recent incident happened only a year after a similar fire forced the vessel to go down for nearly five months.

Shell’s Prelude FLNG Restarts First Cargo Since Fire

Zacks Equity Research: Mon, January 23, 2023 

Shell SHEL recently announced the restart of liquefied natural gas LNG cargoes from its Prelude floating LNG FLNG facility offshore Australia, following a temporary fire-related technical outage in December.

According to Shell, the fire was promptly put out and the area was declared safe; it also stated that no one was hurt and all of the facility’s workers were safe and well.

Following a small fire at the 3.6M metric tons/year facility, Prelude, the largest floating plant for natural gas liquefaction in the world, had paused its gas production last month due to an ongoing investigation. read more

RIGZONE

Prelude FLNG Loads Out First Cargo Since Fire

by Bojan Lepic| Rigzone Staff| Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Even though Shell has not confirmed any restart on its massive Prelude FLNG, Reuters reported that the Methane Becki Anne LNG tanker has begun loading.

The Methane Becki Anne was the first LNG tanker to berth at Shell’s Prelude floating LNG site off Western Australia since it was shut down after a fire.

According to Reuters, the LNG carrier vessel berthed at the Prelude plant on January 17, Refinitiv ship-tracking data showed. Refinitiv’s data also showed that LNG has already begun loading. read more

Report: Output from Shell’s Prelude FLNG Shut Again

BY Bartolomej Tomic, managing editor of Offshore Engineer.

December 22, 2022

Shell has stopped production at its Prelude floating LNG plant off Western Australia after a fire.

A Shell spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday that the fire at the giant FLNG unit “was rapidly extinguished.”

The 488-meter-long, Shell-operated, Prelude FLNG unit forms part of an offshore development that produces natural gas from the remote namesake field, located approximately 475 km north-northeast of Broome in Western Australia. The Prelude is the world’s largest FLNG unit. read more

REUTERS

Shell, unions reach wage deal to end industrial action at Prelude FLNG

Sonali Paul: PUBLISHED AUG 23, 2022 09:48PM EDT

MELBOURNE — Shell and unions representing workers at its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility have reached a wage deal to end a long-running strike and restart production at the site off northwest Australia, they said on Wednesday.

Shell shut the 3.6 million-tonnes-a-year Prelude facility in July and told customers it would be unable to supply LNG for the duration of the protected industrial action, or strikes approved by Australia’s Fair Work Commission, over a wage dispute. read more

Shell to Stop Paying Prelude LNG Workers From Monday, After Industrial Action Extended

By Reuters: July 20, 2022, at 3:47 a.m.

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Shell Plc has told workers at its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility it will stop paying them as of Monday if they are not on site, a Shell spokesperson said on Wednesday. Shell was meeting with workers after their combined union, the Offshore Alliance, extended protected industrial action, which began 40 days ago, to Aug. 4, the spokesperson said. read more

THE TIMES

Shell shuts gas plant after strike

Shell has been forced to shut its troubled Prelude floating liquefied natural gas plant as workers escalate a strike over pay.

The oil and gas group was yesterday in the process of halting production at the plant off the coast of Australia after informing customers it would be unable to offload cargoes.

Shell had already been forced to reduce output from Prelude after workers at the floating plant went on strike last month.

The latest strike plans effectively prevent tankers being moored alongside the plant to offload cargoes and, with storage facilities on the plant nearing capacity, Shell was forced to shut down production. Strike action is expected to continue until July 21. read more

abc.net.au

Shell, Australian Workers Union in stalemate over Prelude dispute

ABC Kimberley / by Taylor Thompson- Fuller: 29 June 2022

Key points:

• A fresh round of industrial actions are set to hit Shell’s offshore gas facility Prelude next month

• Workers set to be transported to the facility on Wednesday were told to stand down

• A pay dispute between unions and the Anglo-Dutch company are at a stalemate

Shell has cancelled gas shipments from its offshore facility Prelude as an industrial dispute between unions and the Anglo-Dutch resources company come to a head.

Contractors set to fly out to the resources rig on Wednesday were told to stand down in response to the disagreement over pay increases, rostering and job security.

The dispute has also caused Shell to advise their customers they will be cancelling some gas shipments from the facility until mid-July. read more

Argus Media

Australia’s Prelude LNG cleared for restart

Published date: 18 March 2022

Production at the 3.6mn t/yr Prelude floating LNG project in the Browse basin offshore Western Australia (WA) has been granted approval to restart, Australia’s offshore security regulator said.

The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (Nopsema) has closed a direction issued to project owner and operator Shell on 23 December 2021, instructing it to “demonstrate that the facility can operate safely in the event of power loss before production can commence”. Shell also confirmed that the direction has closed, but has no further comment at this stage. read more

OFFSHORE TECHNOLOGY

Shell’s QGC JV plans for new gas drilling phase in Australia

Shell has announced that its Queensland Gas Co. (QGC) joint venture (JV) plans to enter a new drilling phase for natural gas, onshore Queensland, Australia.

The work will be carried out together with JV partners China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), and Japan’s Tokyo Gas. Shell is the operator and holds a majority interest in the QGC venture.

Between 2022 and 2024, the QGC will drill approximately 145 new gas wells in the Western Downs region of Queensland. read more

iol.co.za

Court halts Shell’s seismic survey along the Wild Coast

By Brenda Masilela : 28 Dec 2021

PRETORIA – The Grahamstown High Court in Makhanda on Tuesday granted an interdict against Shell’s seismic survey along the Wild Coast

This a second application made in the same court to stop oil multinational Shell’s seismic survey along South Africa’s Wild Coast.

Three weeks ago, Judge Avinash Govindjee dismissed the application by activists – including Greenpeace – to stop the survey on the basis that “irreparable harm” to marine species had not been proved. read more

ArgusMedia

Australia’s Prelude LNG faces indefinite shutdown

Published date: 28 December 2021

Production at the 3.6mn t/yr Prelude floating LNG project in the Browse basin offshore Western Australia (WA) will be halted until Shell demonstrates that its facility is able to operate safely in the event of power loss, Australia’s offshore security regulator said.

The National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (Nopsema) issued a notice to project owner and operator Shell on 23 December, instructing it to investigate the “incidents and associated consequences” that took place at the Prelude facility early this month and present a plan for all necessary corrective actions. read more

HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Shell expands U.S. solar footprint with Savion acquisition

Royal Dutch Shell plans to acquire solar and battery storage company Savion, expanding its renewable energy footprint in the U.S. as oil giants face mounting pressure to change their business models and address climate change.

Shell New Energies U.S. LLC, a subsidiary of the European oil major, on Tuesday said it will purchase Kansas City-based Savion from investment bank Macquarie’s Green Investment Group. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of the year. Financial terms were not immediately disclosed. read more

THE NEW DAILY

‘Disgusted’ Powershop customers abandon ship over Shell takeover

Zac Crellin Reporter@zacrellin: November 23, 2021

When oil giant Shell announced it was buying renewable electricity provider Powershop Australia on Monday, many of its 185,000 customers instantly switched providers.

Powershop Australia launched in 2012 and had gained a reputation for being 100 per cent carbon neutral – a credential many now see as tainted by the Shell acquisition.

“I was just disgusted and amazed that they thought they could get away with that, without people caring or noticing,” former customer Kristen O’Connell told The New Daily. read more

The Guardian

Shell increases stake in Australia’s electricity market with Powershop takeover

A Meridian spokesperson defended the sale of the retailing arm to one of the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies, saying the company’s commitment “to do good by our customers and the planet is stronger than ever”.

“We consider this sale as a positive for both, knowing customers will get the same great service and knowing Shell Energy and its partner ICG’s vision is to significantly invest in a transition to a cleaner energy future,” the spokesperson said. “We are proud of that.” read more

REUTERS

Chevron, partners go ahead with $4 bln project at Gorgon LNG

MELBOURNE, July 2 (Reuters) – Chevron Corp (CVX.N) and its partners in the Gorgon LNG project off Western Australia have agreed to go ahead with a $4 billion project to improve gas recovery from offshore wells and keep the huge liquefied natural gas plant filled for 40 years.

Chevron is the operator of Gorgon LNG and owns 47% of the project. Its partners are Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N), Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L), Osaka Gas (9532.T), Tokyo Gas (9531.T) and JERA (9501.T), (9502.T). read more

Shell’s Australia boss says Big Oil faces a push for faster change

By Nick Toscano: June 9, 2021 — 5.09pm

The Australian boss of global energy giant Shell says society’s growing determination to speed up the shift to cleaner energy has driven a sharp escalation of climate pressure engulfing oil and gas producers this year.

In his first public comments since a Dutch court ordered Shell to set deeper and faster emissions cuts targeting a 45 per cent reduction by 2030, Shell Australia chairman Tony Nunan said he believed industry, governments and the public were becoming increasingly aligned on the need to achieve net-zero emissions by the middle of the century. read more

Jillian Ambrose: Thu 15 Apr 2021 13.58 BST

Royal Dutch Shell has urged investors to vote for its strategy to shift the business towards cleaner energy sources, despite warnings that the plan does not go far enough to meet the Paris climate agreement goals.

The oil company set out its energy transition plan before its annual shareholder meeting in May, when investors will be able to take part in an advisory vote on Shell’s climate plans for the first time. The vote will not be binding. read more

Shell says green power shift will lift need for Australia’s LNG

By Nick Toscano: March 26, 2021

The Australian boss of global energy giant Shell sees demand for liquefied natural gas exports continuing to grow until at least the late 2030s even as COVID-19 hastens the shift away from planet-warming fossil fuels.

Shell, which believes its oil output may have hit a peak in 2019 and is now likely to gradually decline, has revealed a brighter outlook for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) assets including those in Queensland and off Western Australia. read more

Shell announces completion of sale of minority interest in QCLNG Common Facilities infrastructure to Global Infrastructure Partners

WEBWIRE – Monday, March 15, 2021

QGC Common Facilities Company Pty Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Shell, today announced it has completed the sale of a 26.25% interest in the Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG) Common Facilities to Global Infrastructure Partners Australia for US$2.5 billion, following the receipt of regulatory approval.

The sale was announced on December 21, 2020, and is consistent with Shell’s strategy of selling non-core assets in order to further high-grade and simplify Shell’s portfolio. The transaction has an economic reference date of January 1, 2021. read more

Shell resumes production at massive floating LNG plant

Article by Adam Duckett: 14JAN 2021

SHELL has resumed production of LNG from its huge floating processing plant – Prelude – following a series of project setbacks that halted output for almost a year.

The oil major said this week: “LNG cargoes have resumed from Shell’s Prelude FLNG facility.”

Shell repeated the statement it has made in response to a series of setbacks at the project, which at 488 m long is the largest ship ever built: “Prelude is a multi-decade project, and our focus remains on delivering sustained performance over the long-term.” read more

Shell resumes LNG shipments from world’s largest floating structure

2020 Was One of the Worst-Ever Years for Oil Write-Downs

Royal Dutch Shell’s Prelude floating facility has struggled to deliver income. PHOTO: ROYAL DUTCH SHELL AUSTRALIA/REUTERS

By Collin Eaton and Sarah McFarlane: Dec. 27, 2020 9:00 am ET

The pandemic has triggered the largest revision to the value of the oil industry’s assets in at least a decade, as companies sour on costly projects amid the prospect of low prices for years.

Oil-and-gas companies in North America and Europe wrote down roughly $145 billion combined in the first three quarters of 2020, the most for that nine-month period since at least 2010, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis. That total significantly surpassed write-downs taken over the same periods in 2015 and 2016, during the last oil bust, and is equivalent to roughly 10% of the companies’ collective market value. read more

Australia trims 2020-21 LNG export forecasts on COVID-19, production issues

• AuthorNathan Richardson 
• EditorAastha Agnihotri 
• CommodityNatural Gas

Sydney — Australia has cut forecasts for the country’s LNG exports for 2020-2021 (July-June) by some 6% to 75.6 million mt, citing the expected impacts of both the COVID-19 pandemic and domestic technical issues.

If realized, the forecast for the current fiscal would see volumes fall by 3.7 million mt year on year. They are expected to recover in 2021-2022 to 80.1 million mt, the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources said Sept. 28 in a report. read more

Shell begins restart of Prelude FLNG after seven-month suspension

LNG revenues smashed on price slump

Angela Macdonald-Smith, Senior resources writer:12 Aug 2020

Australia’s revenues from LNG exports slumped a massive 52 per cent in July compared with a year earlier as export prices followed crude oil prices into the basement, cementing prospects for a big dip in export earnings from the commodity this financial year.

LNG export revenues for the country were likely about $1.98 billion last month, sinking from north of $4 billion a year earlier, according to an analysis released on Wednesday by consultancy EnergyQuest. read more

Shell gets green light for huge Crux backfill project

SHELL Australia has been granted approval by the national oil and gas regulator for development of its massive Crux field offshore Western Australia, though the company earlier flagged a delay to the development thanks to pandemic and oil price concerns.

Paul Hunt: Senior Journalist: Oil & Gas, Policy. 05 August 2020

The 2 trillion cubic feet Crux gas field project will be the source of backfill for the Prelude floating LNG vessel, which has not sent a cargo since February.

The development will consist of five subsea production wells tapping into the northern Browse Basin, which will then be tied back to an unmanned platform. read more

APRIL 13, 2020 / 7:53 AM /

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Shell has, in an unusual move, offered liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes for loading from 2021 onwards for a period of at least five years through a tender, three traders said on Monday.

The firm has issued a five-year strip tender offering four cargoes a year from 2021 onwards with an option to extend for another five years, two of them said.

The tender closes on May 18, they added.

The cargoes are likely for loading from Australia, one of them said. read more

• Shell Australia describes the facility as its “first large-scale solar farm”.
• Queensland chosen as the project’s location because of reliable sunshine.

Shell Australia is set to construct and operate a solar farm made up of around 400,000 photovoltaic panels in the state of Queensland.

In an announcement Friday, Shell Australia described the facility as its “first large-scale solar farm” and said it would have a capacity of 120 megawatts.

Work on the project is set to finish in 2021, with Shell Australia saying up to 200 new jobs will be created during the construction phase.

Queensland was chosen as the project’s location because it had “some of the most reliable sunshine in the world”, the company added. The solar farm will help to power operations at the QGC onshore natural gas project and cut carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 300,000 tonnes a year. read more

Royal Dutch Shell Plc will build its first large-scale solar farm as part of its plan to expand into power generation.

Shell, which has set itself a goal to become the world’s top electricity producer by 2030, expects to complete the plant in Queensland, Australia, early next year. The facility will indirectly supply the company’s QGC liquefied natural gas export facility, reducing that project’s carbon footprint.

“Solar is one of the building blocks of Shell’s power strategy,” said Greg Joiner, Vice-President for Shell Energy in Australia. “We are increasingly incorporating renewable energy into customer offers, as we have done here for QGC.” read more

Shell Makes Significant Find Offshore Australia

Shell Australia has announced a “significant” gas and condensate discovery in the Browse Basin off the North West Coast of Western Australia.

The find was made through the Bratwurst-1 exploration well, which was said to be successfully concluded after a 78-day campaign. The discovery is located 99 miles north east of the Shell operated Prelude FLNG facility and presents an opportunity for a future tie-back to Prelude, according to Shell.

No figures were released in connection with the discovery, but it was said to support Shell’s growth plans for “more and cleaner energy, with LNG being the predominant focus for Shell in Australia”. read more

Giles Parkinson: 16 December 2019

The head of Shell Australia, Zoe Yujnovich said the two acquisitions – Esco and ERM Power – would enable Shell to supply more and cleaner energy to utility, commercial and industrial customers in Australia.

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has snapped up a near half share in one of the biggest solar developers in Australia as part of a major push to expand its large-scale solar operations in the country.

Shell – fresh from the purchase of ERM Power – a major generator and retailer to small and big business – announced the purchase on Monday of a 49 per cent stake in Esco Pacific, saying it intended to accelerate the development of its large-scale solar projects, and to add to its pipeline. read more

OCTOBER 4, 2019

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell has promoted its current Australia chief, Zoe Yujnovich, to the role of executive vice president for conventional oil and gas from Jan. 1, based in the group’s headquarters in The Hague, Shell Australia said on Friday.

In her new role, Yujnovich will report to Shell’s upstream director and be responsible for delivering growth across 18 countries, including Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Oman, the UK and Iraq.

Yujnovich, an Australian, joined Shell in Canada in 2014 from the mining industry and since February 2017 has run its Australian business, which accounts for about a quarter of the group’s invested capital. read more

Matthew Stevens Columnist: 23 August 2019

Shell Australia’s $617 million pitch for electricity trader and generator ERM Powerstands as the most tangible expression yet of the transition mission that the local outpost of the petroleum super major set for itself more than three years ago.

Back in June 2017, in a move that foreshadowed co-ordinated global ambitions in electricity only recently fully enunciated by the legendary mother ship, Shell Australia revealed its strategic hand by establishing an energy trading business in Melbourne. read more

By Nick Toscano: August 22, 2019 

Global oil and gas giant Shell has launched a $617 million takeover offer for Australian energy retailer ERM Power as the multinational seeks to make a foray into the country’s energy retailing market.

Shell is proposing to buy ERM – Australia’s second-largest power retailer to commercial and industrial customers – for $2.465 a share, the two companies announced on Thursday morning.

The offer represents a 43 per cent premium to ERM’s last closing price of $1.72.

Shell’s proposal has gained the backing of ERM’s founder, Trevor St Baker, who holds 27 per cent of the company. Mr St Baker said he intended to vote in favour of the takeover bid “in the absence of a superior proposal”. read more

Bloomberg: Shell Profit Misses as Slowing Economy Hurts Gas, Chemicals

By Kelly Gilblom: 1 August 2019, 07:15 BST Updated on 1 August 2019, 08:14 BST

Cash flow rises, but integrated gas adjusted profit falls 25%

Shell CEO says macroeconomic conditions were challenging

Royal Dutch Shell Plc got caught into the same earnings trap as many of its peers, reporting second-quarter earnings that fell well short of expectations as the slowing global economy hit everything from natural gas to chemicals.

Profit in Shell’s integrated gas division was down by 25%, but earnings were lower across all of its businesses, including upstream oil and gas production, and refining and chemicals.

“We’ve seen some very severe macroeconomic headwinds — probably most pronounced in our downstream business where we saw some weaker refining margins — but especially a much weaker trading environment for petrochemicals,” Chief Executive Officer Ben Van Beurden said in a Bloomberg TV interview on Thursday. “In our upstream, we’ve seen headwinds particularly in North American gas.” read more

By Kevin Orland: 23 May 2019, 12:00 BST

*Canadian project has seen better-than-expected reliability

*Adviser sees more activity in carbon-utilization projects

A Royal Dutch Shell Plc-operated carbon capture and storage project in Canada has hit a milestone of sequestering 4 million tons of carbon dioxide about six months ahead of schedule and at a lower cost than estimated, helped by better-than-expected reliability.

The Quest facility, which sequesters emissions from the Scotford Upgrader near Edmonton, Alberta, started up in November 2015 and has since run ahead of its target of capturing 1 million tons of carbon a year, said Anne Halladay, a geophysicist who has been an adviser on the project since it was in construction in 2014. That performance has been driven by less unplanned maintenance than projected and more efficient performance, including less chemical usage, she said. read more

• 02 May 2019 | 08:58 UTC: London
• Author Stuart Elliott
• Editor Elizabeth Thang
• Commodity Natural Gas

London — Shell expects to ship its first LNG cargo from its Australian floating LNG production facility, Prelude in the second quarter, its CFO Jessica Uhl said Thursday.

Speaking after the release of its Q1 earnings, Uhl said the first LNG would follow the shipment of the first condensate cargo from Prelude last month.

Prelude FLNG is one of the most anticipated LNG projects in recent years due to its deployment as the world’s largest floating facility, though it has experienced delays due to unspecified production issues. read more

• Author: Andrew Toh    Wanda Wang    Eric Yep
• Editor: Wendy Wells
• 25 March 2019

Shell has loaded the first condensate cargo from Australia’s Prelude FLNG project, the company said Monday.

“We can confirm that the first shipment of condensate has sailed from the Shell-operated Prelude FLNG facility. This is another step towards steady state operations,” a Shell spokesperson said in an emailed response.

The Shell-controlled Aframax tanker, Advantage Atom, departed from Prelude FLNG on March 20, S&P Global Platts vessel tracking software cFlow showed. read more

MARCH 25, 2019

MELBOURNE, March 25 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell on Monday said it had shipped the first condensate cargo from its Prelude floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project off northwestern Australia over the weekend.

“We can confirm that the first shipment of condensate has sailed from the Shell-operated Prelude FLNG facility. This is another step towards steady state operations,” a Shell spokeswoman said in emailed comments.

Shell had hoped to start generating cash flow from Prelude in 2018, but has yet to start shipping LNG from the project, which was to have been the world’s first floating LNG facility but was beaten by Malaysia’s Petronas. read more

Angela Macdonald-Smith Energy reporter: Mar 20, 2019

The head of Europe’s biggest battery producer says the company’s takeover by oil giant Shell will give it the “bold” presence needed to thrive when the sector takes off in 18 to 24 months, when faster growth rates and tougher competition will prove a competitive test.

“We are in the very beginning of the storage market worldwide,” Sonnen chief executive Christoph Ostermann said during a visit to Australia this week. “We expect to reach an inflection point very, very soon and we have to prepare for that, secure financing for that and enhance our global footprint.” read more

Angela Macdonald-Smith: March 18, 2019

Oil major Shell has set out ambitions to build a major electricity generating and retailing business in Australia within the next decade as part of its global shift towards lower-carbon energy, in comments that look set to revive speculation that a significant acquisition may be on the cards.

Maarten Wetselaar, the group’s global head of gas and new energies, said it would be “an enormously lost opportunity” if Shell didn’t get good at supplying low-carbon electricity to consumers and make the most of its famous brand. read more

By Reuters: last updated: 28/02/2019

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina joint venture Arrow Energy on Thursday was granted leases for a A$10 billion (5.37 billion pounds) project to develop Australia’s biggest coal seam gas resource.

The Queensland government said it had granted 14 leases to Arrow Energy for the Surat project, which holds 5 trillion cubic feet (140 billion cubic metres) of gas. Arrow agreed in December 2017 to a 27-year deal to sell output from Surat to the Queensland Curtis LNG (QCLNG) project run by Shell. read more

By Tim Daiss – Feb 25, 2019, 3:00 PM CST

More developments are underway that show just how far global liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets have progressed in the last five years. Until recently, the super-cooled fuel was mostly bought and sold via restrictive long-term off-take agreements where the buyer usually signed up for 15 or 20-year deals that helped producers finance massive capex projects.

However, in the last few years, as more supply hit the market, a long-term supply overhang developed that not only put downward pressure on prices but gave buyers more options as well as more leverage in contract negotiations. In addition to more supply flooding the market, a robust spot market for LNG in Asia has been developing which has seen buyers, for example, Tokyo Gas and several others, also become traders. read more

Global supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) will tighten next year despite more being produced, according to the latest forecast from Shell.

Written by Allister Thomas – 25/02/2019 11:09 am

In its 2019 Outlook for LNG, Shell said demand will continue to rise next year, with “supplies to tighten in the mid-2020s”.

Shell warned that more new projects are needed.

Demand for cleaner fuels to improve air quality in Asia saw demand rise by 27million tonnes to 319million in 2018, with demand expected to reach around 384million tonnes in 2020.

Supply is expected to rise by 35million tonnes this year but it will not be enough to offset demand, with the additional supply to be absorbed completely by Asia and Europe. read more

Sonali Paul, Chen Aizhu: February 21 2019

MELBOURNE/SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina are at loggerheads over gas sales pricing at their Arrow Energy joint venture, holding up development of Australia’s biggest coal seam gas resource, three industry sources said.

PetroChina, the listed arm of China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), is eager to start developing Arrow’s 5 trillion cubic feet (140 billion cubic meters) of gas in the Surat Basin in Queensland to turn around loss-making Arrow Energy, one of its key overseas assets. read more

Sophie Vorrath 13 February 2019

The Australian arm of global oil major, Royal Dutch Shell, has firmed up plans to build a 120MW solar farm in Queensland’s Western Downs region, which it describes as one of many “great opportunities” to evolve and grow the business in the Australian market.

In an address to the Melbourne Mining Club on Wednesday, Shell Australia chair Zoe Yujnovich said the “well-advanced plans” for the company’s first solar farm proposed building the 400,000 panel project on land adjacent to its QGC onshore natural gas business near Wandoan. read more

GAS TODAY

Shell proposes multi billion dollar LNG project

14 February 2019

Shell and its joint venture (JV) partners are officially seeking approval to develop the Crux gas field off the coast of Western Australia.

With JV partners Seven Group and Japan’s Osaka Gas, Shell has submitted a proposal – estimated to be worth more than $2 billion – to the National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority to develop the field, located approximately 160 km northeast of the Prelude field in WA’s Browse Basin. read more

Shell Australia has “well advanced” plans for a 120 MW utility scale PV array to supply its QGC onshore gas operations in northern Queensland. The announcement was made Shell Australia Chairman Zoe Yujnovich during a speech today, in which she pointed to an Australian “energy transition” in which “electrons will play a bigger role”.

The QGC operations sprawl across a landmass the size of Belgium and is Shell’s largest LNG project globally. Image: Shell

FEBRUARY 13, 2019 JONATHAN GIFFORD

Fossil fuel giant Shell’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) operations globally is set to be partly supplied by PV power. Shell Australia announced the move today, which will come in the form of a 120 MW solar farm to be developed on land that forms some of its QGC fracking operations in Queensland. The gas is liquefied, in an energy intensive process, at the 8.5 million tonne Curtis Island export facility near Gladstone – the company’s biggest LNG operation globally. read more

Shell Australia chairman Zoe Yujnovich said industry must help to direct government to create a durable energy policy after more than a decade of failed energy and climate policies. CREDIT: BEN RUSHTON

By Cole Latimer: February 13, 2019 — 7.30pm

Shell has blasted the federal government over climate and energy policies saying business needs to take the lead on climate action, and the Coalition blaming high gas prices on exports “cannot go unchallenged”.

In a speech, Australia chief Zoe Yujnovich lashed the government’s performance on climate change and threats to cut off gas exports, saying industry needs to take the lead on climate and energy as governments are unable to “sell” their constantly changing policies. read more

Peter Milne: The West Australian: Saturday, 9 February 2019 1:13AM

Shell has struggled through a series of safety missteps as it readies its cutting-edge Prelude floating LNG vessel for production.

Shell reported 17 incidents to the offshore safety regulator NOPSEMA between May and October 2018 that the regulator classified as dangerous occurrences.

The reports, obtained by WestBusiness through a freedom of information request, show the challenges facing hundreds of WA workers that have helicoptered about 500km back and forth between Broome and the 488m-long giant since it arrived from South Korea in July 2017.

One difficulty with floating LNG vessels is that an LNG carrier must berth alongside as the two vessels bob about in the sea, unlike floating oil production facilities that offload oil to a tanker a safe distance away through long flexible hoses.

In early May 2018 Shell tried to bring the LNG carrier Gallina alongside.

A tow rope to a tug failed when the 290m-long carrier was just 50m from Prelude and the operation had to be aborted.

That problem was caused by a tow rope that was incorrectly assembled.

Nine days later something as trivial as wrongly shaped plastic thwarted another attempt to load LNG on to Prelude.

It was thought the Gallina was safely secured to the Prelude by 16 mooring lines that ran through guides on the Prelude called fairleads. As the crew prepared to connect the LNG loading arms a mooring line failed and the Gallina was released and pulled away.

Afterwards it was found that all 16 lines had been significantly damaged by rubbing against sharp edges of nylon liners in the fairleads.

This seemingly trifling detail could have caused a “complete mooring failure” with “potential for serious consequences” if it had occurred later while LNG was being transferred.

Two weeks later the Gallina successfully offloaded its LNG and Prelude had gas to power itself and test its processing plant.

However, having gas on board the Prelude increased the risks Shell had to manage.

A flange leaked near the LNG loading arms as super-cold -162C LNG sitting at the bottom of a pipe caused it to contract and bend.

Another type of gas, hydrogen sulphide, was released when construction debris from the Korean shipyard was being removed from a tank and the area was evacuated.

In July a fire damper intended to keep gas from entering the air-conditioning system for the accommodation quarters failed to close when tested but was repaired quickly.

In August, Prelude lost all its power supply when a pump sending water to a gas-fired boiler tripped.

All workers on the Prelude and the attached 750-bed Posh Arcadia floating hotel went to their muster stations as the diesel emergency generators powered up to supply essential services.

But a transformer failed and the system to cover the deck with firefighting foam was left without power and unable to operate.

Other problems included a test of a system to cover the top of LNG tanks with a deluge of water in an emergency that found it delivered only half the planned amount of water as the system used undersized valves.

There was a small fire when dust in an oxygen cylinder valve ignited, leading to a muster of all personnel.

Newly installed insulation on a hot high-pressure steam line was seen smouldering and when the insulation was pulled away it caught fire. The insulation had been secured by combustible tape.

A Shell spokeswoman said the company had a rigorous program on Prelude to identify and manage risk in a controlled way.

“It is not unexpected for issues to arise during this phase of a project and it is standard practice to notify NOPSEMA,” she said. “We are proud of our safety and reporting culture.”

She said Shell encouraged workers to raise safety concerns.

TEETHING PROBLEMS

2017

July: Prelude arrives from Korea

2018

May: Tow line to tug fails, mooring lines fail

June: LNG loaded onto Prelude, gas leak, flood detection not working

July: Hydrogen sulfide leak, flooded machinery room, fire dampers did not close

August: No power to fire-fighting foam

September: Smouldering insulation

October: Small fire

December: 750-bed accommodation vessel for additional workers leaves, wells opened and gas flows to Prelude.

2019

February: Preparing for first export of condensate

SOURCE

RELATED

The links below are to a series of articles, many triggered by a well-placed whistleblower directly involved in the pioneering Royal Dutch Shell Prelude project. Includes articles by Mr Bill Campbell, the retired distinguished HSE Group Auditor of Shell International and another retired Shell guru with a track record of spotting potential pitfalls in major Shell projects. read more