MUSCAT, FEB 28
Marsa LNG, the joint venture developing a 1 million tonnes per year LNG bunkering hub at SOHAR Port and Freezone, has achieved a significant construction milestone on the $1.6 billion project — the first of its kind in the region.
The venture, a partnership between TotalEnergies (80%) and OQ Exploration & Production (20%), announced that the roof of a key LNG storage tank was successfully set in place last week in a technically intricate operation.
CB&I, a leading global contractor specialising in tank and terminal storage solutions, executed the “air-raising” of the tank roof — an engineering manoeuvre in which compressed air is used to lift a fully assembled roof into its final position atop the storage tank in a controlled and precisely managed process.
The operation involved safely lifting 631 tonnes of steel to a height of approximately 40 metres, where it was accurately positioned on top of the tank wall.
“This technical feat marks a significant leap forward for the project”, the joint venture said in a statement. “This success is the direct result of meticulous preparation, seamless teamwork and excellent HSE performance by Marsa LNG LLC and CB&I”.
Houston-headquartered CB&I, a subsidiary of McDermott, was awarded the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the 165,000 cubic metre full-containment concrete LNG storage tank, along with associated piping. Technip Energies is serving as EPC contractor for the overall bunkering hub.
Meanwhile, overall construction progress had reached approximately 39 per cent by the end of 2025, according to OQ Exploration & Production (OQEP). Another notable development during the year was the signing of a Natural Gas Sales Agreement with the Integrated Gas Company (IGC) to supply 150 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) of gas from Block 10 — corresponding to Marsa LNG’s gas equity — to the bunkering project. OQEP holds a 20 per cent direct and indirect working interest in Block 10, which is operated by Shell.
“OQEP derives a dual income stream from Block 10: first, through the sale of direct gas; and second, through the sale of LNG from the upcoming Marsa LNG bunkering project, the region’s first LNG bunkering hub”, the publicly traded upstream energy firm, part of OQ Group, noted in its 2025 financial statements.
The Marsa LNG bunkering hub is expected to be commissioned in the second or third quarter of 2028.
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