The ambitious LNG project includes an offshore project with subsea facilities and two large floating platforms, an onshore component featuring the 8.4 million tonne per annum LNG plant in Darwin, and an 889km 42-inch gas transmission pipeline from the field to the plant.
Engineering, procurement, construction and installation contractor for the project Saipem welcomed its Semac 1 pipelay barge to the scene yesterday to begin the pipeline construction stage.
"Building one of the world's largest and most exciting resource development projects certainly has its challenges, but we have every confidence in our people and our contractors to deliver Ichthys as planned," Ichthys managing director Louis Bon said.
"I would like to personally thank our project teams and the many contractors and subcontractors involved up to now, and acknowledge the continuing support of our joint venture participants, governments and the communities in which we operate.
"With first production a little more than two years away, our operations team is working hard to prepare for start-up and commissioning, and we remain absolutely focused on successfully delivering the second half of this world-class project."
The full construction phase of the project is set to cost a pretty penny, with $US10 billion ($A10.6 billion) committed to be spent in Australia alone, including more than $A5 billion in the Northern Territory and $3.5 billion in Western Australia.
"Achieving 50 per cent means overall we have completed half of the project's physical fabrication and construction work," INPEX president Australia Seiya Ito said.
"For INPEX, this is a major step towards the successful start-up of our flagship Ichthys LNG project, which with an operational life of at least 40 years, is integral to realising our medium to long-term vision for growth."
