Dutch contractor Van Oord and Luxembourg-based specialist Subsea 7 have won a contract to design and build the pipeline for ExxonMobil’s offshore gas-to-energy project in Guyana.

The joint venture will design, manage and install approximately 190km of natural gas pipeline in water depths of up to 1,400m. The pipeline will connect the Liza field (owned by ExxonMobil affiliate Esso Exploration & Production Guyana (EEPGL)) with an onshore gas-fired powerplant west of the Demerara River, along the coast of Guyana.

Van Oord's pipe-laying barge Stingray will start operations in mid-2023, using horizontal directional drilling methods to install 75km of pipeline in near-shore waters up to 28 metres deep.

The demand for power in Guyana is forecast to increase significantly over the next five years as the economy grows. The gas-to-energy project is intended to support the country’s low-carbon development strategy which includes plans to replace heavy fuel oil with natural gas as the main energy source.

The new pipeline will carry around 50 million cubic feet (1.4 million cubic metres) of gas per day to a 300 MW gas-fired powerplant on-shore.

Van Oord commercial director Hans van Gaalen said: “Developing the coastal energy infrastructure for the project will allow our Subsea 7 and Van Oord consortium to positively contribute to the development of Guyana’s electricity supply which in turn will reduce Guyana’s dependence on imported fuels.”

Craig Broussard, vice president of Subsea 7, commented: ”This is an important project to support the Guyanese people and we look forward to continuing our relationship with EEPGL in one of the most prolific and exciting development basins in the world.”