China's State Development and Planning Commission has approved the proposal of a group of Chinese companies led by China National Offshore Oil Corp. for the first phase of a previously reported LNG pilot project in Guangdong (OGJ Online, June 26, 2000). The project calls for the building of an LNG terminal and trunkline. The partners in the Chinese consortium have begun the process to select a foreign project partner. Foreign partner selection will occur by Aug. 8.
Norwegian state oil company Statoil said July 27 the expanded facilities at its Karst� complex north of Stavanger will soon be ready to start receiving gas from Asgard in the Norwegian Sea. A 10.4 billion kroner development project has doubled gas reception and treatment capacity at the plant. It is now able to handle roughly 64 million cu m/day. The company has added a new Asgard receiving station; a plant to extract gas liquids from the rich gas; a fractionation plant for separating propane, butanes, and naphtha; two large rock caverns for storing propane; and a separation/treatment plant for ethane. New jetties are also ready, Statoil said.