Technip-Coflexip emerged as the frontrunner for the landmark contract in mid-December, following the opening of commercial bids for the EPC package. It was the clear low bidder, undercutting by a considerable margin the prices offered by the Japanese group of Chiyoda Corporationand Mitsubishi Heavy Industriesand from Germany's Uhde. The other bidder was a group comprising Japan's JGC Corporation, Italy's Snamprogettiand US-based Halliburton KBR.

QGTL, a joint venture between Qatar Petroleum (QP)and South Africa's Sasol, appointed in October a group of 15 local and international banks to lead arrange the $700 million loan to part finance the project. The loan documentation has now been completed, leaving the way for financial close to be achieved (MEED 25:10:02).

The plant, to be located in Ras Laffan, will have a capacity of 34,000 barrels a day (b/d). It will use 330 million cubic feet a day of lean gas, produced from the enhanced gas utilisation (EGU) project, as feedstock. Based on Sasol's slurry phase distillate technology, the plant will produce 24,000 b/d of fuel, 9,000 b/d of naphtha and 1,000 b/d of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

The plant's front-end engineering and design (FEED) package was prepared by the UK's Foster Wheeler Energy (FWEL).