MHI awarded turbomachinery order for LNG export plant

MHI’s H-100 gas turbine

Linde Engineering has awarded Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) a contract to supply the main refrigeration gas compression trains for the UST-Luga LNG project in Russia. The order consists of four highly efficient dual shaft 120 MW H-100 gas turbines and 10 centrifugal compressors.

Led by RusChemAlliance LLC, the 50-50 special-purpose venture of PJSC Gazprom and JSC RusGazDobycha, the Ust-Luga LNG project is a natural gas liquefaction plant designed to apply the liquefaction technology owned by Linde and Gazprom, with two trains to produce upwards of 13 million tons per annum (mtpa).

The liquefaction plant to be located near the Baltic seaport of Ust-Luga, Leningrad Oblast will utilize natural gas gathered from domestic sources via Russia’s Unified Gas Supply System (UGSS). The EPC contract was signed in September, with a projected LNG production start date by 2026.

“We are pleased to supply MHI’s H-100 driven compressor trains for this prestigious Ust-Luga LNG plant,” said MHI President & CEO Seiji Izumisawa. “This project will showcase the benefits of MHI’s LNG solution in terms of lower production costs, increased productivity, reduced complexity and lower lifecycle costs, while significantly reducing plant emissions.”

MHI’s H-100 gas turbine is suited to drive the main refrigeration compressors in large scale LNG plants for several reasons, MHI said.

The units are highly efficient, which reduces CO2 emissions, compared with the conventional types of heavy duty gas turbines. The dual shaft design does not require a large external starter / helper motor, making it more compact, the company said.

In addition, the H-100 gas turbine can operate over a broad range of speeds and full pressure, which eliminates the need to flare refrigerant. At full load, the M-100 produces single digit parts per million nitrous oxide emissions, the company said.