Flowserve Corporation (FLS), a provider of flow control products and services for the global infrastructure markets, has entered into a five-year contract with Shell Australia to provide general maintenance services for Shell’s Prelude Floating Liquified Natural Gas (FLNG) facility, which is producing natural gas from an offshore field in Western Australia.

A press release from the American multinational corporation said that it will support Prelude from its recently refurbished Quick Response Center (QRC) in Darwin, the capital of Australia’s Northern Territory.

Flowserve QRCs are dedicated maintenance, repair and manufacturing workshop facilities that provide customers with responsive, local support. Since opening in 2003, the Darwin QRC in Yarrawonga has primarily serviced flow control valves and seals; as part of this agreement, Flowserve has committed to expanding its capabilities to include maintenance and repair services for centrifugal pumps, positive displacement pumps, heat exchangers, fans and blowers, hydraulic power units, and other related equipment.

“Flowserve values the successful projects and relationships we have developed with Shell through the years,” said Scott Rowe, President and Chief Executive Officer of Flowserve. “We look forward to helping maximize the uptime and productivity of the Prelude facility with highly responsive maintenance and repair services.”

The contract will create new positions in the Darwin QRC, which supports Flowserve’s commitment to contracting with local businesses and workers.

Sanjay Chowbey, President of Flowserve’s Aftermarket Services & Solutions division, said, “This agreement with Shell Australia will enable us to increase our employment of local and indigenous people, including skills training that can lead to opportunities for permanent employment.”

The Shell-operated Prelude FLNG facility is an offshore development, producing natural gas from a remote field approximately 475 km north-northeast of the coastal town of Broome in Western Australia.

The Prelude FLNG facility is scheduled to produce 3.6 million tons per annum (mtpa) of LNG, 1.3 mtpa of condensate and 0.4 mtpa of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). The Prelude FLNG facility is operated by Shell in a joint venture with INPEX Corporation, 17.5%; Korea Gas Corporation (KOGAS), 10%; and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), 5%.