GLNG: Eni’s second FLNG in Congo is deployed

Italian energy major Eni is set to deploy its second floating LNG (FLNG) terminal offshore the Republic of Congo, Reuters reported on November 23.

The hull of the Nguya FLNG facility was launched from the Wison Heavy Industry shipyard located in the eastern Chinese port city of Nantong and will now make the journey to the Republic of Congo.

The FLNG vessel measures 380 metres long and is capable of storing 180,000 cubic metres of the super-cooled gas. Once the facility begins operating at full capacity offshore Congo it will boast a production capacity of 2.4mn tonnes per year (tpy) of LNG. It will be the second offshore terminal Eni is operating in the central African country.

Eni’s flagship project Tango FLNG began operating in December 2023 with first gas introduced. The FLNG has a liquefaction capacity of 0.6mn tpy of the super-chilled fuel. The Nguya FLNG is expected to be operating at full capacity by the conclusion of 2025, at which time the two offshore terminals will combine to give the Congo LNG project a production capacity of 3mn tpy.

It has been a busy year for Eni in Congo, with the company exporting its maiden LNG cargo to Italy in February. The cargo arrived in Italy’s Piombino terminal, which is owned by national grid operator Snam, in early April. Snam’s Piombino terminal opened in July 2023 and plays a key role in enabling Italy to purchase gas from Africa.

For the Republic of Congo, the cargo delivery also held symbolic significance transforming the Central African country into an energy exporter.

"We have been the first to believe in the value of Congo's gas, primarily for domestic power generation, and then for export," Eni’s chief operating officer for Global Natural Resources, Guido Brusco remarked in a statement.

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