Financial Energy Review
Chevron is set to Shutdown it’s $76 billion Liquefied Natural Gas plant due to cracks in one of it’s three trains.
The move to stop operation in the LNG Plant is not unconnected to the order from the West Australian (WA) regulatory agency requesting Chevron to put it’s massive Gorgon Liquefied Natural Gas (GLNG) plant into a temporary phased shutdown.
It is said that the order cames after workers at the plant last month identified large cracks in pressurised propane kettles on one of three LNG trains
Train two has been in a period of scheduled maintenance but the discovery of its cracks raised concerns about possible issues with the rest of the plant.
WA’s Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (DMIRS) had ordered Chevron to check the propane heat exchangers on the other two trains for similar cracks by Friday.
But over the weekend the regulatory agency said it had agreed to Chevron’s plans for a staged inspection schedule after being presented with safety and technical information.
Train one will shut down for inspection in early-October and train three in January 2021.
It is not immediately clear how long the trains would need to shut down for.
DMIRS dangerous goods director Steve Emery said the supporting evidence provided by Chevron was comprehensive.
“This information included details on the origins and nature of the defects as well as the risks associated with various approaches to addressing the uncertainties around trains one and three” he said.
DMIRS was satisfied the proposal provided an acceptable level of risk under the Dangerous Goods Safety Act, he added.
Authorities are also confident Chevron has taken sufficient measures to mitigate potential gas leaks.
Workers had identified cracks of up to one metre long and 33mm deep on train two’s kettles, according to the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union.
The plant on Barrow Island, 60km off the Pilbara coast, supplies gas locally and across Asia.
Chevron has been issued improvement notices for each of the eight propane kettles on train two and it has until September 4 to make them compliant.
A further 24 improvement notices were issued earlier this month relating to other issues at the plant.
“We are committed to operating safely and reliably and continue to work closely with DMIRS in planning and implementing inspections in the safest and most effective way” Chevron had said.
The appropriate safety measures are in place and we continue to deliver LNG to customers and natural gas to the Western Australian domestic market under our contractual commitments.’
