Golar LNG, a Bermuda-headquartered owner and operator of liquefied natural gas (LNG) midstream infrastructure, has opened the doors to a multibillion-dollar backlog, thanks to a floating LNG (FLNG) unit, which has ticked off its task list a commercial operations date (COD) at a huge gas project in African waters, operated by the UK-headquartered BP.
Golar LNG’s FLNG Gimi , which achieved first LNG production offshore Mauritania and Senegal earlier this year, has reached the commercial operations date for the 20-year lease and operate agreement with BP at the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) natural gas field, seen as the biggest project in the UK-headquartered energy giant’s portfolio.
BP is the operator with a 56% interest, with Kosmos Energy (27%), Petrosen (10%), and Société Mauritanienne Des Hydrocarbures (SMH) (7%), as the firm’s partners in the project, where LNG production came less than a month after the FLNG received feed gas from the floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) GTA located approximately 40 kilometers offshore.
Kosmos highlighted: “The announcement of COD marks a significant milestone for the project partners, as LNG production volumes have successfully been ramped up to a level equivalent to the annual contracted volumes of approximately 2.4 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), or around 90% of nameplate capacity of 2.7 mtpa.
“The achievement of COD follows first LNG in February and the first LNG cargo in April. The second and third LNG cargo were exported in May and early June respectively and a fourth cargo is currently loading. The fifth cargo is expected at the start of the third quarter. With this expected cargo timing, Kosmos forecasts 3.5 gross cargos in the second quarter.”
While commenting on the FLNG Gimi’s COD at the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim Phase 1 project, Golar LNG highlighted that this achievement triggers the start of the 20-year lease and operate agreement that unlocks the equivalent of around $3 billion of adjusted EBITDA backlog, which is the Bermuda player’s share.
The firm, which is progressing FLNG growth, emphasized: “The COD milestone marks a major achievement for one of Africa’s deepest offshore developments which introduce Mauritania and Senegal as LNG exporters. We look forward to continuing working together with the GTA operator BP and its partners Kosmos, Petrosen and SMH as well as Mauritanian and Senegalese authorities to deliver safe and reliable operations and to create value to all stakeholders.
“Following the achieved COD of FLNG Gimi and announcement of the two FLNG charters in Argentina on May 2, 2025, Golar is accelerating work on its next FLNG unit(s). We continue to advance commercial discussions, with charterer demand guiding design choice of the fourth FLNG unit. In addition to the 3.5 mtpa MKII option at CIMC Raffles shipyard, Golar has signed a final engineering study to confirm EPC price and delivery for a 5 mtpa MKIII FLNG and is updating price and schedule for an up to 2.7 mtpa MKI FLNG.”
BP recently stepped up its oil and gas game to pursue its reset strategy aimed at boosting its upstream business by bringing online ten projects by the end of 2027. To this end, the firm delivered first gas at Cypre offshore Trinidad and Tobago and the start-up of the second development phase at a field off the coast of Egypt.