Woodside begins processing Pluto gas at NWS via interconnector

Woodside Petroleum Ltd. has started processing gas from Pluto-Xena fields offshore Western Australia through the Karratha LNG and domestic gas infrastructure via the newly completed Pluto-Karratha Gas plant interconnector.

The 3.2-km interconnector pipeline connects Pluto LNG with the Karratha plant, enabling access for third party gas producers. Both plants are on the Burrup Peninsula.

The interconnector start-up supports accelerated production of gas from Phase 1 of Pluto’s Pyxis Hub, Woodside said.

Karratha will process about 2.5 million tonnes of LNG in aggregate along with 20 petajoules of domestic gas from Pluto-Xena in the next 3 years.

Commercial agreements underpinning third-party gas processing at the North West Shelf (NWS) also allow NWS project participants to maximize the value and use of infrastructure on Burrup as the original NWS gas fields begin winding down.

NWS participants comprise Woodside Energy Ltd., BHP Petroleum (North West Shelf) Pty Ltd., BP Developments Australia Pty Ltd., Chevron Australia Pty Ltd., Japan Australia LNG (MIMI) Pty Ltd., and Shell Australia Pty Ltd. All hold a 16.67% interest. Woodside is operator.

Woodside holds a 90% interest in Pluto LNG and operates the infrastructure. Kansai Electric and Tokyo Gas each hold 5%.

The Pluto-Karratha interconnector pipeline was built and is operated by AGI Operations Pty Ltd.