Project manager Alinta Asset Management has completed welding hot tap fittings to four sections of the existing pipeline, he said.

“The completion of four hot taps in such a short period – while at the same time carrying out complex tie-in work at Compressor Station 10 – was a major coordinated achievement by all involved,” Hohnen said.

“Shippers have responded cooperatively to our requests for reduction in gas-take on the few occasions where we require reduced flows to enable us to perform tie-in work directly on the pipeline.”

Hohnen said progress was also continuing on the southern looping section, south of Compressor Station 10 near Kwinana. Work on this stage of the expansion project is expected to be completed next month.

Work has now started on the northern looping project, south of Compressor Station 8 in the mid-west of the state.

The $A430 million stage four expansion project will increase the natural gas pipeline’s capacity about 125 terajoules a day by adding eight new compression units and more than 200km of pipeline looping.

Stage 4A of the project – the addition of two new compression units – was completed ahead of schedule and to budget in January. The project will see additional capacity become available to shippers in stages between now and early 2007.

In late February, DBP lodged an application with Western Australia’s Economic Regulation Authority (ERA) seeking its pre-approval of the capital costs for a stage five expansion.

This would see up to a further $1.5 billion invested in over 1150km of additional pipeline looping and further compression to increase the pipeline’s capacity by about 375TJ per day.