WATCH: In the run-up to commercial ops, French firm finishes subsea installation work at Germany’s LNG terminal with single lift

France’s marine contractor Geocean, which is tasked with subsea installation work at the second liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Wilhelmshaven developed by Germany’s state-owned Deutsche Energy Terminal (DET), has hit a new milestone with the completion of the subsea installation of the first pipeline end manifold (PLEM) in a single lift.

Once FSRU Wilhelmshaven, a joint venture between Tree Energy Solution (TES) and ENGIE, signed a contract for installation works with ECOnnect Energy, following the execution of the supply contract, signed in 2022, to deliver a jettyless ready IQuay solution for the offshore jetty at Wilhelmshaven, Geocean was hired to work at the Wilhelmshaven 2 LNG terminal, which was scheduled to begin commercial operations in the second half of 2024.

With an LNG storage capacity of 138,000 cubic meters, the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Excelsior, owned by the U.S.-based Excelerate Energy, will be deployed at this LNG terminal, which is currently under construction. The FSRU has an annual nameplate regasification capacity of 5 billion cubic meters of natural gas.

As a result, the French firm recently began the initial stage of the project to install a 1.7-kilometer-long gas import pipeline 14 meters under the sea, directly connecting the FSRU Excelsior to the German grid, as well as to deliver the complete installation services to the FSRU Wilhelmshaven for the IQuay.

As part of its scope related to the installation of the first thermo composite pipes (TCP) bundle for the jettyless IQuay F-Class solution for LNG import to Wilhelmshaven, Geocean unloaded three of the six TCP reels at the Eurogate terminal and loaded the pipeline end manifolds and flexible riser hoses on board the Fast-Flex barge.

With TCP lines connected to the gas grid at the shore, subsea PLEM installation came up next on the firm’s agenda, as part of the jettyless IQuay F-Class to fast-track LNG. Since the first PLEM installation was complete, the French firm’s Fast-Flex barge reached the FSRU jetty, and the TCP laying operation into the pre-trench was also done.

Given the restrictions at the site, the company explains that TCP lines have been brought alongside the Fast-Flex barge and are connected to the PLEM, just like the flexible riser, which is also linked. Geocean is adamant that this is one of the most critical and sensitive operations during the installation of the ECOnnect Energy IQuay F-Class. The firm is now heading to project completion.

The list of four LNG terminals on the German North Sea coast, which are operated by DET, part of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, encompasses Wilhelmshaven 1, Brunsbüttel, Wilhelmshaven 2,  and Stade. However, the last two are said to be under construction.

The European country’s first floating terminal for importing LNG in Wilhelmshaven was officially commissioned for service in December 2022. Fairplay Towage Group has been picked as the towage provider for the floating LNG terminals in Brunsbüttel, Stade, and Wilhelmshaven.

The start-up of commercial operations of the Wilhelmshaven 2 LNG terminal will allow KN Energies to take the reins of the terminal’s technical operation and maintenance infrastructure, including the berth -which Van Oord got picked to construct – its equipment, and the pipeline, the organization of technical teamwork, and the coordination of preventive actions.