Paris-based TotalEnergies and the Oman National Oil Co. (OQ) took a final investment decision (FID) for the Marsa LNG project, reaffirming a long-term partnership between TotalEnergies and the Sultanate of Oman, the companies said on April 22.

Along with becoming the first LNG bunkering hub in the Middle East, Marsa LNG plans to be fully electrically driven with a greenhouse gas intensity below 3 kg CO2e/boe.

Marsa LNG is expected to start production by first-quarter 2028 with TotalEnergies holding 80% interest in the project and OQ holding 20%.

The project includes 150 MMcf/d of natural gas, coming from the 33.19% interest held by TotalEnergies and OQ in the Mabrouk North-East Field on onshore Block 10.

The FID allows Marsa LNG to extend its rights in Block 10 until its term in 2050.

The project also integrates a 1 million tonnes per annum capacity LNG liquefaction plant in the port of Sohar, Oman.

A 300-megawatt peak photovoltaic solar plant will be built to cover 100% of the LNG plant’s annual power consumption.

Technip Energies won the engineering, procurement and construction contracts for the LNG plant and CB&I was awarded the EPC for the 165,000-cu. m LNG tank, TotalEnergies said.

“We are especially pleased to deploy the two pillars of our transition strategy, LNG and renewables, and thus support the Sultanate on a new scale in the sustainable development of its energy resources,” said Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies.

TotalEnergies, which has operated in Oman since 1937, also signed a sales and purchase agreement with Oman LNG to offtake 800,000 tonnes per annum of LNG for 10 years in 2025.