Connecting to the Goldfields Gas Pipeline
Now successfully completed and commissioned, the $6.5 million interconnect project is supplying gas from the North West Shelf Gas facilities on the Burrup Peninsula, through the DBNGP where it connects with the Goldfields Gas pipeline, 130km south of Karratha.
Damper Bunbury Pipeline (DBP) said a portion of the new gas was already being supplied to Billiton’s iron ore and nickel operations sites at Newman, Mt Keith, Leinster, Kalgoorlie and Kambalda.
The group said it was the first time Western Australia’s two major pipelines have been interconnected.
“The new capacity will provide additional economic opportunities for mining and commercial centres, including Newman, Plutonic, Wiluna, Jundee, Mt Keith, Leinster, Murrin Murrin, Leonora, Cawse, Kalgoorlie, Kambalda and Esperance,” it said.
DBNGP Stage 5A expansion
DBP said it has now received state and federal environmental approvals for the Stage 5A expansion project, the first of a $1.5 billion proposed three-part expansion of the pipeline.
In addition, the group has awarded all key procurement, engineering and construction activities for the project. These include:
• Alinta, a minority stakeholder in the DBNGP, providing project management services for the expansion;
• Contracting WorleyParsons for engineering and procurement services;
• Awarding contracts for the supply of line pipe and coating to Japanese companies Metal One and JFE Steel;
• Contracting Saipem, an international pipelining company, to construct 10 loops. Work on this is expected to start in the last week of February and finish at the end of January 2008; and
• DBP finalising arrangements to enhance each of the compressor stations.
Expected to cost $700 million, Stage 5A is the second major expansion of the DBNGP since DUET (Diversified Utility and Energy Trusts) and minority owners Alinta and Alcoa took over the pipeline in October 2004.
The timing of Stages 5B and 5C depends on several issues, including the price and availability of gas to support new resource processing and power generation developments.
