Oil major Chevron is facing a bill estimated to run into the hundreds of millions of dollars after a mechanical problem on its Gorgon project.
According to reports in Australian media, the company and its partners experienced a “major mechanical problem” when the first maiden LNG cargo had been sent.
It means production may not resume on the project until later this month.
The company would not discuss how long it was expected to take to fix the propane refrigerant circuit, which is part of the first of Gorgon’s three LNG production lines.
It’s understood the repair bill is likely to be more than $100million with the second cargo not sailing now until the end of the month.
Chevron Australia managing director Roy Krzywosinski is believed to have spoken to staff at a regular town hall event where he discussed the recent technical difficulties but did not elaborate.