A consortium of UK-based Penspen and Lebanon’s Dar al-Handasah (Shair & Partners) has been awarded an extension to a contract managing the construction of a gas and condensate project linking Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Penspen was awarded the initial project management consultancy (PMC) deal for the Gas & Condensate Export System (GCES) in early 2012 from project owner Kuwait Gulf Oil Company (KGOC) – one of the joint operators of the Khafji oil and gas field located in the Divided Zone between the two countries.

Under the $10m agreement the consortium will continue manage the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the pipeline, which runs both offshore and onshore from Khafji to Mina al-Ahmadi in Kuwait.

France’s Technip was awarded the EPC contract for the project in February 2012 and at the time expected to complete the works by the second half of 2014.

Penspen said the project is now set to be completed in the next 18 months.

“This is a new contract, extending the work Penspen were originally contracted to do,” a Penspen spokesperson told MEED.

KGOC and Aramco Gulf Operations Company jointly operate the 300,000 barrel-a-day capacity field.

According to Technip, the total export pipeline length is 110 kilometres, with four kilometres onshore in Saudi Arabia, followed by 47 kilometres offshore and 59 kilometres onshore in Kuwait.