China-based provider of clean energy services Wison New Energies (WNE) has won a detailed feasibility study (DFS) for a newbuild floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility set to work at a block offshore Suriname operated by Malaysia’s energy giant Petronas.
The FLNG unit is slated to work at Block 52 , located north of the Surinamese coast. The block’s operator and sole owner is Petronas, since its former partner, ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Suriname, decided to exit the block in late 2024.
Wison sees the award as a significant milestone, reaffirming its FLNG technical capabilities, while injecting fresh momentum into the global energy transition.
“We are deeply honored to be awarded on this transformative project,” said An Wenxin , Senior Vice President of Wison New Energies. “Drawing on our technical expertise and global FLNG track record, we are committed to providing Suriname with an efficient, sustainable, and integrated energy development pathway.”
The FLNG facility will be located approximately 120 kilometers off Suriname’s coast, tapping into the Sloanea gas field at a water depth of around 450 meters. The facility will be able to receive the feed gas from the subsea production system, process the stream to produce LNG and condensate product for domestic and export to the international market.
The Chinese player believes the DFS contract could serve as the basis for a front-end engineering design (FEED) study, accelerating the country’s energy independence as it emerges as a strategic hub for offshore gas development.
Covering an area of 4,749 square kilometers, Block 52 contains several discoveries. Following a gas discovery in 2020 with the Sloanea-1 exploration well, Petronas drilled the Sloanea-2 appraisal well in June 2024.
In August 2024, the Malaysian player disclosed that it was considering the option of developing a standalone FLNG project at the field in the future, prompted by what it described as success at the Sloanea-2 well.
Before this, an oil discovery was also made at the Roystonea-1 well in Block 52, prompting further evaluation to determine the full extent of the discovery and its potential development synergy with the Sloanea-1 discovery.
Furthermore, Petronas confirmed a third hydrocarbon discovery on the block in May 2024 at the Fusaea-1 exploration well about 170 kilometers offshore and 9 kilometers east of Roystonea-1. The well, which was spudded in February 2024, encountered several oil and gas-bearing Campanian sandstone reservoir packages.
The Malaysian player and its partners recently started work on converting a very large crude carrier (VLCC) into a floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) unit destined for an Angolan deepwater project. Its partners in the project are TotalEnergies Angola and Sonangol Pesquisa e Produção.