The Onshore Processing Facility is located off the north eastern shore of Sakhalin Island, 7 km inland from the landfall of the offshore gas pipelines from the Lunskoye-A platform. The asset occupies the territory of over 62 000 m2.
The primary function of the OPF is to process gas and condensate received from the Lunskoye field for the pipeline transportation to the oil export terminal and LNG plant at Prigorodnoye production complex, so to support Sakhalin Energy in maintaining its sustainable LNG capacity. For that purpose booster pumps are used at the OPF with a capacity to pump up to 195,000 b/d. At full capacity the asset is capable of processing 1,800 mln scf/d of gas (51 mln m3/day) and about 60,000 b/d of condensate/oil (9,500 m3/day).
The Sakhalin project has set new standards in social and environmental performances in Russia. In 2005 the project accepted the recommendations of the Independent Scientific Review Panel (set up under the International Union for Conservation of Nature) and re-routed the offshore pipelines to avoid whale-feeding areas. In 2006, in cooperation with IUCN, the Western Gray Whales Advisory Panel was established to provide advice to minimize risks from oil and gas developments in whale habitats.
Spina, thanks to thirty years of experience in the energy sector and in particular in the Oil & Gas sector, has provided solutions designed specifically for the type of plant in question. The dedicated team of technicians and engineers has developed commercial proposals according to the specifics of the project, providing drawings and data sheets of the products of own production or resale suitable to the order, on which tests and pre-shipping inspections have been carried out. In particular, Spina contributed to the project by providing custom cable trays, explosion-proof material made in compliance with European and international standards and IECEx certified for use in potentially explosive atmospheres, such as local control stations, JB junction boxes in GRP, cable glands, conduits and accessories, as well as a number of spare parts.
The project has set new standards in terms of environmental respect: Sakhalin Energy has been sponsoring the preservation of the native fauna – typically gray whales – for many years. In 2006, the World Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) set up a panel of expert consultants to follow the project. The piping system of the plant was redesigned and advanced acoustic techniques and stringent speed limits were applied to ships in order to minimize any interference in the area where the whales spend mostly the summer months.