Bechtel has started work on the Pluto Train 2 project, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant being built at Woodside Energy’s Pluto LNG onshore facility at Karratha, Western Australia.

Bechtel will be responsible for engineering, procurement and construction of the new facility which will have an LNG capacity of approximately five million tonnes per year.

The project is intended to support Australia’s domestic energy market and will add new gas infrastructure with capacity of about 225 terajoules per day, which Bechtel says is equivalent to keeping the lights on in about 10,000 households for a whole year.

The Pluto Train 2 project will employ about 2,000 people at peak in 2024, with a large proportion of employees expected to be drawn from within Western Australia.

Bechtel has already engaged a number of local and indigenous businesses to support delivery, with more awards expected as the project progresses.

Bechtel Energy president Paul Marsden said Bechtel was pleased to start work on such an important project for the Asia-Pacific region.

“We are proud to do our part to invest in local communities and improve the quality of life where we work by creating jobs and opportunities, while also bringing greater energy security for the region,” Marsden said.

Bechtel has commenced site preparation and installed site offices, worker accommodation and other facilities. Initial earthworks and activities in the laydown and storage areas will start up before the end of 2022.