US-based Bechtel has been selected to carry out the front end engineering design (feed) contract for Abu Dhabi's Hail and Ghasha Sour Gas Development, according to industry sources.

Contractors that submitted bids for the contract have been informed of the result and a formal announcement is expected in the near future, according to the sources.

Three other companies were competing for the feed contract:

• Fluor Corporation (US)
• Worley Parsons (Australia)
• Technip (France)

The project is estimated to be worth $15bn and is being developed by Adnoc Sour Gas, a subsidiary of state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) that was previously known as Al-Hosn Gas.

The Hail and Ghasha project is one of the largest sour gas fields projects that Adnoc is developing and is forecast to produce about 1 billion cubic feet of sour gas a-day.

The infrastructure requirements for the Hail and Ghasha project include a minimum of 11 offshore artificial islands to be designed and constructed.

The Hail and Ghasha fields are located in the Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve offshore in the Gulf, about 90km and 130km to the west of Abu Dhabi Island respectively.

In August 2017 the US engineering company KBR was awarded the project management consultancy (PMC) contract by Occidental on behalf of Adnoc to manage the detailed design and surveys phase on the project.