Jemena has announced it is partnering with engineering and construction firms Zinfra, Nacap, and Wasco to connect Australia’s first LNG import terminal at Port Kembla to the Eastern Gas Pipeline (EGP).
The appointment will see the partners build a 12 kilometre underground pipeline which will transport up to 130 petajoules of gas annually from Squadron Energy’s Port Kembla Energy Terminal (PKET) to customers in NSW and Victoria via the EGP. Once commissioned the pipeline will be able to transport enough gas to meet more than 75 per cent of NSW’s current gas needs.
Jemena’s Executive General Manager of Gas Markets Antoon Boey said Jemena had partnered with the three companies in recognition of their skill and acumen in delivering complex energy infrastructure projects.
“We’re proud to be working with highly regarded construction service providers like Zinfra, Nacap, and Wasco on a project which will help deliver more gas to Australia’s east coast gas market,” said Mr Boey.
“We will be leveraging the skills of our project partners in different ways, with Zinfra set to provide overarching project management and engineering services for the project; Nacap will construct the pipeline itself; and Wasco will deliver the Kembla Grange Metering Station, where this pipeline connects to the Eastern Gas Pipeline.”
Nacap’s President Matthew O’Connell said they are working with the local community, stakeholders, and other project partners to ensure the construction phase activities are “delivered safely and on time to underpin gas supply and with minimum impact to local communities”.
Wasco Australia’s Managing Director, Mel Whyte said they recently completed expansion projects for Jemena at Roma North and the Atlas Gas Compression Facilities in Queensland, and in 2021 completed the Western Sydney Green Hydrogen project in Horsley Park, New South Wales.
“Wasco is also finishing construction of the Malabar Biomethane Project and several other NSW pipeline and facility projects led by Jemena and its partner Zinfra.”
Developed by Australian Industrial Energy (AIE), the LNG import terminal will the first in New South Wales and will be capable of supplying up to 100 petajoules (PJs) of natural gas a year. The imported quantity will meet more than 70 per cent of NSW’s current annual gas demand.
The NSW Government granted Development Consent for the Project in April 2019 and a Modification to the original Development Consent was approved in April 2020.
Development of the proposed Port Kembla Power Station to be located adjacent to the PKET is also advancing. The project is being configured for the future decarbonisation of the electricity grid with the capability of operating on 50 per cent green hydrogen by volume from its first commissioning, with a development pathway for operation on 100 per cent green hydrogen by 2030.
