The plant is designed to handle 530 million standard cubic feet of gas per day to produce liquefied petroleum gas, condensate and NGL for Iraq's domestic market.

Technip expects FEED to be completed by the end of 2014.

It said the work scope covered engineering design of the NGL process units, utilities and the submission of an engineering procurement and construction package.

"The project is the first of the new greenfield associated gas processing facilities that will significantly minimise gas flaring in Iraq and make more energy resources available for power and domestic use," Technip said.

The value of the FEED contract, awarded by the Basra Gas Company JV, which is owned by Iraq South Gas Company (51%), Shell (44%) and Mitsubishi (5%), was not revealed.

NGLs include propane, butane, pentane, hexane and heptane - with these hydrocarbons not requiring refrigeration to be in a liquid state.