Equinor To Restart Hammerfest Production After Extensive Repairs

Norwegian major Equinor has concluded repairs at its Hammerfest LNG facility and is ready to resume production within the coming week. The extensive repairs at Melkøya have been completed, but the run-up of the plant takes somewhat longer than planned.

To remind, Equinor closed down the facility in September 2020 after a fire in the air intake on one of the plant's five power turbines. Initially, Equinor indicated that the LNG plant would be closed for up to 12 months for repairs.

During the weekend, a minor fault was discovered on a compressor that needs to be rectified before start-up. The component is now being replaced, and the stepwise process towards operations continues through the week.

In addition to damage caused by the fire on the air intake on one of the plant's five power turbines, large amounts of seawater from the extinguishing have damaged other auxiliary systems such as electrical equipment and cables in the plant.

When Equinor informed that the facility will be closed down for at least 12 months, plant director Andreas Sandvik added that the period will also be used to carry out other maintenance and repair work planned for 2021. Initial return to production was expected around October 2021.

"Hammerfest LNG has been prepared for production, but we are taking the extra time necessary to safely resume operations," said Grete B. Haaland, Equinor's senior vice president for onshore facilities.

Already in January, Equinor said on behalf of the partnership that the start-up of Hammerfest LNG had been scheduled for May 17, 2022. After an extensive repair and improvement work period, the plant has been prepared for ramp-up.

The partnership includes Equinor, Petoro, TotalEnergies, Neptune Energy, and Wintershall Dea. Equinor is the operator of Hammerfest LNG.

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