Greater Tortue Ahmeyim FLNG Terminal

This article is part of the Global Fossil Infrastructure Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.

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Greater Tortue Ahmeyim FLNG Terminal, also known as GTA LNG, is a proposed floating liquefied natural gas terminal for export on the maritime border of Senegal and Mauritania. The terminal belongs to both countries.

Location

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Project details

Phase 1

• Operator: BP
• Owner: BP (56.29%); Kosmos Energy (26.71%), Petrosen (10%), Societe Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbures (7%)
• Parent Company: BP (56.29%); Kosmos Energy (26.71%), Government of Senegal (10%), Government of Mauritania (7%)

• FSRU Owner: Golar
• FSRU Parent company: Golar
• Location: on the maritime border of Senegal and Mauritania
• Coordinates: 16.355639, -17.745778 (approximate)
• Trains: 4
• Capacity: 2.5 mtpa (0.625 mtpa per train)
• FID status: FID (2018)
• Status: Construction
• Type: Export
• Start year: 2024
  • Formerly 2023

Phase 2

• Operator: BP
• Owner: BP (56.29%); Kosmos Energy (26.71%), Petrosen (10%), Societe Mauritanienne des Hydrocarbures (7%)
• Parent Company: BP (56.29%); Kosmos Energy (26.71%), Government of Senegal (10%), Government of Mauritania (7%)

• FSRU Owner: Golar
• FSRU Parent company: Golar
• Location: on the maritime border of Senegal and Mauritania
• Coordinates: 16.355639, -17.745778 (approximate)
• Capacity: 2.5-3 mtpa
  • Formerly 7.5 mtpa
• FID status: pre-FID (2024)
  • Formerly late 2022/early 2023
• Status: Proposed
• Type: Export
• Start year:

mtpa= million tonnes per year; bcfd = billion cubic feet per day; bcm/y = billion cubic meters per year

Background

The Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project will produce gas from an ultra-deepwater subsea system and mid-water floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel, which will process the gas, removing heavier hydrocarbon components. The gas will then be transferred to the floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility, a nearshore hub located on the Mauritania and Senegal maritime border.

The FLNG facility is designed to provide 2.5 million tonnes per annum, with the total gas resources in the field estimated to be around 15 trillion cubic feet. The produced gas will be used for export, as well as for domestic use in both Mauritania and Senegal. The parties will continue to finalize agreements and obtain final regulatory and contract approvals, following which Phase 1 of the development will move into a detailed design and construction phase.

Project execution activities are expected to commence in 1Q 2019. First gas for the project was expected in 2022. Following a competitive process involving all partners, BP Gas Marketing has been selected as the sole buyer for the investor partners’ LNG offtake for Tortue Phase 1. Partners involved include the Mauritanian and Senegalese governments, BP, Kosmos Energy and National Oil Companies Petrosen and SMHPM.

In December 2018, a final investment decision was taken for Phase 1.

In October 2019 a US$700 million loan for the conversion of the LNG carrier Gimi into an FLNG vessel to serve the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim FLNG Terminal was closed. Participating commercial banks included ABN Amro, ING, Morgan Stanley and Standard Chartered, with the publicly funded Development Bank of Japan also involved.

Construction on the terminal is presumed to have begun in late 2019.

On April 7, 2020, BP declared force majeure due to delays caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and announced a one-year delay in delivering the project to 2023.

As of October 2021, the total cost of the project was expected to be $4.6 billion.

In May 2022, Kosmos Energy announced Phase 1 was 75% complete at the end of Q1 2022, and the FLNG vessel was expected to become operational by 2023.

In January 2023, the floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel for the project set out from the Qidong shipyard in China for the project. The Gimi FLNG vessel for the project is under construction at Singapore's Keppel shipyard. The vessels are set to arrive on site in Q4 2023.

According to a February 2023 edition of Global Energy Monitor's Inside Gas, "Sources close to the project have disclosed that the oil and gas major is now caught in the middle of deteriorating relations between the countries and an attendant range of unresolved technical, commercial, and security issues. Among the issues facing the phase two project, potentially to be sited onshore, are poor border controls — particularly in Senegal — that would make the project extremely vulnerable to Islamist militants in neighboring Mali. Sources have suggested that BP will only take a FID on phase two at best after phase one of the project comes online."

In September 2023, Upstream reported that the contractor McDermott International, which was to provide a vessel, had withdrawn from the project. BP was working to find a replacement contractor and was in discussion with Allseas. In October 2023, Allseas joined the project.

In January 2024, the FLNG Gimi arrived at the site of the project. The same month, the oil ministries of Mauritania and Senegal said they would begin an audit of the project's costs.

In May 2024, BP was in talks with Golar LNG to fast-track deployment of the long-delayed project. Upstream reported that the FLNG vessel had been ready for commissioning work since February, but was delayed due to technical issues with the floating production, storage, and offloading vessel.

Phase 2 Expansion Project

In February 2023, the development concept for the second phase of the project was confirmed. The project will use a gravity-based structure (GBS), have a total capacity of 2.5-3 mtpa, and be powered by electricity.

The June 2024 GIIGNL report states that, according to the Ministry of Petroleum, Energy, and Mines of Mauritania, construction will begin in 2025 with a planned start year of 2027.