Lloyd’s Register – Groundbreaking Rules for FLNG (Malaysia)

Lloyd’s Register uses its technical knowledge and experience to publish the world’s most comprehensive rules to guide the design, construction and operation of floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facilities – the biggest, most complex floating structures ever seen – meaning natural gas will now be safer, cheaper and have a lower environmental footprint.

Lloyd’s Register’s unprecedented 50-year offshore experience, including its technical knowledge of LNG containment and liquefaction technology, FPSO development and process engineering systems, has allowed this 250-old classification society to publish the first set of rules to comprehensively look at all areas of FLNG facilities.

“Natural gas is a key ‘fuel for the future’ and its safe and economic production will become increasingly more important,” says John Rowley, President, Lloyd’s Register Asia. “The FLNG facilities we have worked on to form these rules will be the biggest floating structures ever seen and in the coming decades, they will allow us to unlock the world’s stranded offshore natural gas reserves. They are essential to the world’s future energy mix and Lloyd’s Register’s experience and knowledge is integral to their safe, sustainable and economic operation.”

According to the International Energy Authority, the world’s primary energy demand will increase by 37% between 2008 and 2035 with the natural gas share overtaking coal before 2035 and starting to reach parity with oil soon after 2040. Gas reserves currently remain abundant yet they are technologically complex to both extract and transport. Liquefied natural gas takes up about 1/600th the volume of natural gas yet until now, formal FLNG design codes have remained underdeveloped and this has presented challenges to develop production engineering systems.

“Ultimately, the Lloyd’s Register FLNG Rules provide a robust and efficient framework in which all other specialist codes and standards can be used. This will be hugely beneficial, for the energy industry and for our wider societies in the future,” concludes John Rowley.

Lloyd’s Register in Asia Pacific

Globally Lloyd’s Register plans to grow its business from its current turnover of USD1.4 billion to USD2.5 billion by 2016 and Asia Pacific is key to this growth and Lloyd’s Register’s energy business is its engine of growth.

By 2016, Lloyd’s Register will have doubled its energy business in Asia Pacific to over USD150 million, through growth in the Upstream, Downstream, Power and Inspection businesses. Lloyd’s Register is currently searching for key acquisitions in all energy sectors, especially in areas of nuclear and renewables as well as growing its engineering, compliance and consultancy capabilities.

The offshore sector is essential to Lloyd’s Register’s growth ambitions and there is an increased capability focus on Perth, Busan, Shanghai as well in the offshore hub of Singapore and Malaysia. In Singapore, Lloyd’s Register will be opening its second Global Technology Centre (the first is in the UK) that will partner with major universities and industry partners, in Singapore and internationally, to focus on research and development projects in the offshore and drilling sectors, to help the global upstream industry operate with confidence and tackle the ever-growing technical, regulatory, commercial and environmental demands.

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Source: Lloyd’s Register, June 6, 2012; Image: Shell