Recent geopolitical and world events have put a renewed focus on energy security, access and independence. With it brings a hybrid of solutions, as the total energy ‘pie’ will be a combination of sources. One of the near-term opportunities is LNG, as new liquefaction capacity is coming online in the next few years, and other liquefaction terminals are moving toward final investment decision. One contributor to shorter timelines from the start of construction to exporting is the modular mid-scale LNG concept.
Modular mid-scale liquefaction
Traditionally, liquefaction plants were defined as peak shaving or baseload depending upon their function and capacity. Regardless of size, a single custom plant design was used to achieve total capacity hence, particularly for the baseload model, as technologies and manufacturing capabilities improved, the trend has been towards ever larger capacities to realize economies of scale. With modular mid-scale total plant capacity is achieved through multiple identical liquefaction modules instead of a single custom plant. For example, a plant with a total liquefaction capacity of 12 million tons per annum (MPTA) can be achieved through six identical 2 MTPA modules or 12 identical 1 MTPA modules. Using proven, standard equipment packages, maximizing shop build, and minimizing on-site construction results in significant advantages of the modular approach, including:
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