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Product category: Oil, Gas, Petrochemical Industry News
News Release from: Emerson Process Management | Subject: LNG into Mexico
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial Team on 03 April 2006

Automation of Mexican LNG regasification
terminal

Emerson Process Management will act as the Main Automation Contractor for the Altamira LNG regasification terminal, under construction in Mexico

Emerson Process Management has been chosen as the main automation contractor to digitally automate Mexico's first liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal at Altamira, near Tampico on the Gulf of Mexico Project capabilities, local support and the PlantWeb digital automation approach led to the selection of Emerson, who will provide essential automation systems and services for the first import terminal in Mexico

It will receive liquid natural gas (LNG) shipments, and convert them back to natural gas to be distributed by CFE, Comision Federal de Electricidad, and PEMEX, the state-owned, nationalised petroleum company.

An additional four terminals are planned for the near future in Mexico; a MAC provider will be selected for these projects.

Overall engineering and construction is provided by ICA Fluor and IHI, who are building the Altamira Terminal for a consortium of Terminal de LNG de Altamira (TLA) - which is jointly owned by Shell Gas BV (Shell), the Total Group of France, and Mitsui and Co.

The regasification terminal will process up to 3.75 million tons of LNG per year base load when in full commercial operation in October 2006.

The Altamira terminal is part of an expanding LNG industry that is critical to the future global energy supplies.

Since liquefied natural gas is about one six hundredth the volume of gaseous natural gas, LNG has major transport advantages, making viable the processing of otherwise unreachable deposits.

The US Department of Energy, for example, expects LNG imports to the USA to grow by 16% per annum through to 2025.

As the Main Automation Contractor, Emerson is responsible for development, installation, configuration, testing, and commissioning of all elements of the system to control the process from the point of receipt through regasification, and into transmission pipelines.

PlantWeb digital automation technologies at the Altamira regasification terminal will include the DeltaV automation system, AMS Suite: Intelligent Device Manager, and Rosemount smart temperature and pressure transmitters.

In addition, Emerson will integrate metering skids, vibration equipment monitoring, fire and gas, safety, and emergency shutdown systems.

"Emerson best met all the requirements for the Main Automation Contractor on this project," commented Juan Jose Aguilar, control systems engineer at ICA Fluor.

"In addition to having expertise in hydrocarbon processing, the company offered an advanced technological solution for controlling the regasification process.

Emerson also complied fully with the Shell Design Engineering Practices as required by the Shell/Total/Mitsui consortium, and was able to bring full engineering and service support to the construction site".

Emerson will provide on-site support and service for the Altamira LNG terminal, according to Ernst Vanstrien, terminal area engineer from TLA responsible for MAC selection.

The project is being managed and implemented by Emerson Mexico, which has engineering and project management skills, complemented by strong local engineering and service support.

"The worldwide importance of liquefied natural gas as an energy source is on a healthy and sustainable growth path, and we are extremely pleased to perform as Main Automation Contractor for the Altamira regasification project," said Leo Rodriguez, President of Emerson Process Management Latin America. Request a free brochure from Emerson Process Management ...

"The project provides another opportunity to draw from our LNG experience that - in addition to regasification at Altamira - includes digital automation improvement to upstream liquefaction and transportation processes.".

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