Samsung Heavy Industries held a formal signing ceremony Tuesday in Washington for the Delfin floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project, cementing a $2.9 billion contract announced June 2 to build the first floating LNG production facility in U.S. history.
The event also marked the completion of the project’s final investment decision, Samsung Heavy said Wednesday.
Samsung Heavy Vice Chairman Choi Sung-an and Delfin Midstream Chief Executive Officer Dudley Poston attended the ceremony, along with executives from the global energy and shipping industries. Officials from the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Maritime Administration and the South Korean Embassy in Washington were also present, underscoring the project’s role in expanding energy cooperation between the two countries.
Delfin FLNG is the first floating LNG project in the United States. Samsung Heavy said the contract is expected to help open the U.S. market for floating LNG production facilities.
The company is also negotiating additional contracts for a second and third Delfin FLNG unit. Samsung Heavy said it expects to play a leading role in building the LNG value chain in North America and further strengthen its position in the market.
“At the Delfin FLNG signing ceremony, global top-tier partners gathered and showed full confidence in Samsung Heavy Industries’ FLNG technology and project execution capabilities,” Choi said in a statement. “We will prove our capabilities through world-class quality and strict adherence to delivery schedules.”