Qld firm wins rich deal in LNG project

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By PATRICK TALU
THE Toowoomba-based construction materials group Wagners Global Services has won a multi-million dollar contract to operate two concrete plants for ExxonMobil’s US$18 billion PNG LNG project.Through the help of the Australian government’s Export Finance and Insurance Corp (EFIC), Wagners will supply, install and operate the plants for the Southern Highlands project, according to an article on the Queensland Business Review (QBR) online yesterday.The actual contract value was not disclosed.QBR said Wagners would work in collaboration with Japanese engineering and construction firms Chiyoda Corp and JGC Corp, whose joint venture CJJV is building the LNG plant for Esso Highlands Ltd, a consortium led by PNG LNG project operator ExxonMobil.Wagners general manager John Watts reportedly said EFIC, the federal government’s export credit agency, had provided two performance bonds to CJJV on behalf of the company.“The Australian commercial banks would have required full security to issue the performance bonds to a party in a foreign jurisdiction and we couldn’t afford to tie up our cash resources in that way,” Watts said.“EFIC’s bonds have freed up our working capital, enabling us to deliver this large-scale contract in a challenging location,” he added.EFIC has provided a US$350 million loan to the broader PNG LNG project, joining an international syndicate of export credit agencies and commercial lenders.Wagners will install and operate two ready-mix wet-batch mobile concrete plants and supply around 130,000 cubic metres of cement for the construction of the LNG plant.